The College Years: Kyoya Ootori
by Spirit Saiga
Summary: Kyoya is thrown a curve ball when in an attempt to find a condo and a roommate, he discovers that names don't always tell you everything. KyoyaXOC
1. Chapter 1

Chapter One:

After the twins and Haruhi had graduated, the host club found half its members scattered across the world. Hikaru was studying design in France, Kyoya was at Harvard, and Kaoru had taken up residence in San Francisco to study business, while our four remaining members stayed in noble Japan to study at Ouran University.

This particular story revolves around the low blood pressure demon lord, and how he came to meet Bobby.

0o0o0o0

Harvard University would turn 377 in 2013. The private Ivy League college located in Cambridge Massachusetts and due to its prestige as one of the best universities in the world, it attracted merit scholars from every corner of the world.

When you're looking at schools, you have to pick on that suits your learning style, major, and all possible living arrangements. Kyoya Ootori could have gone to the best business school in the United States, but Stanford just didn't suite Ootori's 'cool' style.

Harvard had a certain glamor that made Stanford pale in comparison. There was something about the history that was contained in Harvard's Ivy covered walls. Stanford wasn't nearly as old and had the feel of a modern college campus.

Kyoya spent his freshman year in the Harvard dormitories and had grown accustomed to having someone around. Unfortunately, he no longer wished to live on campus. It was loud, boisterous, and reeked of college desperation.

Sure, the campus had the libraries where he got all of his research material, but woman lurked in the many rows of books. At first it was flattering as they would sneak a peek at the young heir, later the women would gain the courage to talk to him. That's when it became a nuisance. Kyoya started going to the library only to copy the work he couldn't check out, and take the books he could. He never spent more than an hour in the library. It was a death trap.

Harvard had a house system for their upperclassmen, but Kyoya wanted nothing to do with it. Instead, he would share a condo in Boston. It was close by and he would have a quiet place to study.

He wanted a roommate simply because after spending all of high school surrounded by friends, he now needed someone around, if only to chase away the occasionally lonely thought. There were days where he thought that maybe Ouran University wasn't a bad idea. But he had dedicated himself to the idea of studying business abroad, and having spent a year in Boston, he was already convinced that he liked it.

He talked to the others through web cam and emails. So he knew what was going on. Tamaki and Haruhi were still working on their relationship after three years. Kaoru was getting nightly meals from a Japanese ex-patriot, a mediator had fallen on Mori-senpai, Hani-senpai had found a new cake shop, and Hikaru was enjoying his time in Paris with a girl who liked to take photos. Life seemed to be working out for all of them.

Kyoya stood in front of a newly built condominium complex. Apparently he would be sharing the place with a guy named Bobby Masters. He was a student at Boston University. Another reputable private college in the state of Massachusetts, Kyoya thought as he pushed his glasses up.

He entered the building and walked to the elevator. His condo would be located on the second floor. Actually, it was a two bedroom loft with three floors, the ad made the distinction very clear. The top and bottom floors were large bedrooms while the middle level was the main living space.

Bobby had been renting with another Boston U student, but they had graduated and moved. This meant the top floor and its bedroom were open for Kyoya to inhabit.

He stopped in front of unit 205 and knocked on the door.

A young woman opened the door. She was his age with long red hair, and sparkling green eyes. She stood in a black and white checkered flannel button up, blue jean, and a pair of All-Stars that matched her shoes. Her sleeves had been rolled up past her elbows. Her hair was pulled back to reveal black zipper earrings, and a Tinkerbelle necklace. Overall, she looked like any number of the Americans roaming around Boston a daily basis.

"I'm looking for Bobby Masters," Kyoya stated in perfect English.

"You're looking at her," The girl smiled. _"_You must be Kyoya Ootori_."_

Kyoya stared at her. She was British. He could tell by the way her vowels were gentler. He blinked, stunned that he had failed to look into the woman so little. How could he have missed the most important piece of information?

"I was under the impression that you would be a male," Kyoya stated.

"Does it really matter if I'm female,"the woman asked. _"_I just need a roommate to share the rent. Male or Female, I do not care. So long as I'm not paying for this place by myself."

"Your name is Bobby_."_

"Why don't you come in?" Bobby moved out of the way and let Kyoya in. _"_My legal name is Barbara, but I've been called Bobby since I was small._"_ She explained as she walked farther into the simple living space.

She leaned against a dining room table. "Good luck trying to find a roommate this close to Harvard though_,"_ She said. "Or, you can ignore the fact that I'm a woman and just live here. That way you're only fifteen minutes away from your campus."

Kyoya mentally groaned. If he didn't take this place, he would be forced to live in a house system where he would be required to participate in the ridiculous house traditions. He pushed his glasses up and smirked. At least now he could move out of the hotel.

"What are the conditions?" He asked.

Bobby pushed herself off of the dining room table and smiled. "It's simple really. I'm an English Major. So long as you aren't some freaky guy who likes a loud house, it should be good. Is there anything I should know about you?"

"Don't wake me up before ten on the weekends and we can have a civil living arrangement."


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter Two:

Kyoya stood in the condo's living room. He was on the phone with his father. "Kyoya, I'm sure there are other places you can stay."

"I've checked. This is the closest to the campus," Kyoya sighed. "This building had security as well. Every other place would allow for unwanted guests." He knew that this would move his father to accept the living arrangement. Albeit begrudgingly. Kyoya had come without his security force, wanting to separate and not be followed.

"But you'd be living with a woman."

Kyoya picked up a framed photograph of Bobby kissing a guy. He had shaggy brown hair. "She's seeing someone. They seem really close."

Kyoya heard his father sigh and he knew that this father-son battle was his. "Are you sure that you can make this work?"

"I can make anything work," Kyoya smirked as the lights hit his glasses.

0o0o0o0

Bobby was hiding in her bedroom as she talked to her father in Irish. Her grandfather was a die hard Irishman and his father had taught him the language and then each generation passed it on to the other. Bobby loved the language and often times used it when she was frustrated, or if she didn't want a strange Japanese guest to listen in. "Daddy, really it's no big deal," she said. "You forget, I'm seeing someone. Bradley's a great guy."

"You've never lived alone with a man before. How you expect this to work?"

"Quite simple really," she smiled as she used her normal catch phrase when it came to explanations. "I just have to remember not to wake him up before ten."

"If your grades fall, you kick the boy to the curb. Understand**?**" her father grunted. He was paying for a foreign private education just for her to grow interest in men.

"Yes daddy," Bobby sighed. "I have to go. I love you."

"I love you too."

Bobby hung up her phone and sighed once more. "Daddy, you're such a worry wart."

She stood up and walked over to her flight of stairs. Directly above them was another flight that led up to Kyoya's room. At least she hoped that he would be taking the room. She entered the living room just as Kyoya hung up with his father. "Had to chat with dear old dad?" she asked switching languages once more.

Kyoya stared at her. Did she just speak Japanese? A small part of him jumped in joy as he realized that he wasn't stuck speaking English all the time. "You speak Japanese?"

"I had to take it in primary school. My mum wanted me to learn another language. Well one that was actually spoken outside the family. Apparently Japan is where future is headed. I was in Japanese immersion in London."

"Smart mother."

Bobby shrugged. "I tend to think so, others might disagree," she said. "I'm going out. Feel free to get yourself settled in. I'm meeting my boyfriend to get some dinner."

"Why don't you live with him?" Kyoya asked.

Bobby shook her head as if the idea wasn't even a possibility. "Too scandalous. I could never do that. What would my parents say? I'm not that intimate with the guy."

"But you can live with me?" Perhaps Kyoya didn't understand her reasoning.

"Well I'm not dating you," Bobby said as if it was obvious. She grabbed a bag that hung off a dining room table, and a coat from the entrance closet. "Good evening Mr. Ootori. Your set of house keys are on the table. Remember to lock up before you leave."

Kyoya watched as she sashayed out the door. He walked over and turned the lock before heading up to see his new bedroom. The doorway opened up to a large room with a queen-sized bed. It was brand new and had a packaged set of expensive sheets. He wondered if Bobby had bought them herself in an effort to sell the pre-furnished room. Empty dark wood bookshelves sat on either side of a cherry desk.

Kyoya looked in the bathroom and found the shower and bathtub suitable and wondered what Bobby had in her bathroom. The more he thought about it, the more he wanted to take a peek. However, he was going to be a gentleman and wait to go into her room once he had been invited to do so.

Kyoya picked up the packaged sheets. Did this mean he had to make the bed on his own?

0o0o0o0

Kyoya woke up two days later to the smell of bacon and eggs. He buried his face in his pillow in an effort to get just the slightest bit more sleep when the intoxicating smell of expensive coffee drew him out from under the covers. He looked at the time as he crawled out of bed: 11:30.

He walked down his flight of stairs in his blue pajamas and bound Bobby standing at the stove in a short silk black robe. He studied her figure and found it pleasing. The way her hair had been pulled up into a messy bun had caused a few strands to fall around her cheeks perfectly framing her green eyes.

Bobby turned around and caught him staring. He blinked and gave an innocent smile. She smiled back. "Good morning sleepy head. Help yourself to some coffee. I'm sure you need it to function and what not. I know I do."

"Thank you," Kyoya nodded. "Where are the cups?"

"Two cupboards in bottom shelf. This particular brew is from Kenya. I got a box of it from my dad after he came back from Africa. He told me that if I was going to make it through the school year I would need my caffeine fix," she laughed at her own personal memories of her and her father.

"What does he do?" Kyoya asked as he pulled a mug from the shelf.

"He's an accidental tourist. He writes books on all the amazing places he's been to," Bobby answered.

Kyoya looked at her as he poured himself some coffee. Well that was a very clever lie she just told. However, he would let it slide. He knew that most families weren't like his. Perhaps she was trying to hide the fact that she was poor. No matter, as long as she stayed out of his way, which she had, their living arrangement didn't have to be anything but civil. Like his roommate last year. He didn't even talk to James now.

Bobby took off her robe and draped it over a chair revealing her pink short pajama bottoms and a grey tank top. "You made breakfast this late in the morning?" Kyoya asked.

Bobby nodded as she stared at an egg as it bubbled on the hot pan. "I make breakfast every weekend. I do it to relax after a week of stress. I'm either at school or I'm at work. So making breakfast is a way to unwind before I start on the mountain of papers called homework."

Kyoya looked at the bacon as the fat popped. His mouth began to water as he thought about eating the scrumptious meal. He could appreciate a simple American breakfast. Especially if bacon was involved. It was admittedly his one guilty pleasure since he had started going to school in America.

"It's almost done. How do you like your eggs?" Bobby asked as she flipped an egg in the pan with a flick of her wrist. "Awesome I did it! I've been working on that trick for a couple weeks now."

"Over easy," Kyoya said.

"Okay," Bobby nodded as she opened a drawer of silverware. "Why don't you set the table for two? I'll get your plate set up. Limp or crisp bacon?"

Kyoya mentally smirked. She was making him breakfast. He could get used to this. "Limp."

"You got it."

"Did you do this with your other roommate?" Kyoya asked as he only grabbed two forks, two knives, and two spoons. How commoners could only eat with only one fork astounded the young Ootori. Weren't they worried about contamination?

Ten minutes later, the two of them had sat down and Bobby had grabbed extra forks. "Why did you choose Harvard?"

Kyoya slid his gaze up from his food. He stopped cutting the white of the egg away and set his fork down to speak. "Harvard's business school is one of the best," he said.

Bobby took a bit of buttered toast. "But it's not the best," she stated simply.

"Why did you choose Boston University?" Kyoya asked changing the topic to focus on her.

"My mother got her Ph.D. in Music there. I plan on getting my English degree and going to grad school for publishing." Bobby answered simply. She didn't fool around. "If I remember correctly, Stanford has the best business school. I have a friend there."

"I have my reasons for picking Harvard."

Bobby smirked. She's seen through his guise of the confident third son. "Trying to get as far as you can from dear old daddy's power?"

Kyoya just stared at her as he reminded himself that he needed a place away from the giggling fan girls. He would handle Bobby.

Maybe.


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter Three:

Kyoya was working on writing a paper on Chaucer's Canterbury Tales when the doorbell rang. He wasn't expecting anyone, so he left Bobby to get the door. He turned his attention back to analyzing the old English text of The Knights Tale.

The doorbell rang again just as he was going to start another paragraph. Kyoya stopped typing and stood up. He headed downstairs and looked around for Bobby. Her bedroom door was closed, so he walked over to the front door and took a quick glance through the peephole. He saw a distorted face of Bobby's boyfriend looking at the door.

Kyoya opened the door and stared at the guy before him. His brown hair was unruly, he needed to shave, and his brown eyes held surprise. Instantly Kyoya didn't like the man before him. He looked crude and like he belonged on a hiking trail instead of college. Was Bobby actually attracted to the mountain man image?

"Who are you?" the guy asked.

"Bobby's in her room working on a paper for her history class," Kyoya stated remembering when she came home and what she had told him. He was just the slightest bit perturbed that he had to speak English. He thought that having Bobby around meant that he could speak in Japanese. "Is she expecting you?_"_

"Are you her new roommate_?" _

Kyoya grew annoyed. Where was Bobby to take the mountain man away? He wanted to finish his paper for his literature course, get some dinner, and go to bed. This business was taking way more time than he cared to spend.

He turned and headed down Bobby's set of stairs. She had given him instructions to never enter her room without permission, but obviously she hadn't heard the doorbell. The unwanted guest followed Kyoya and closed the front door.

Kyoya opened Bobby's door and found her cross legged on her bed. She had pulled her hair into its usual messy bun. Black headphones hung from her ears and her eyes were focused on the computer screen in front of her.

Bobby's bedroom was a mix of greens and dark woods. The brighter greens were reserved for small trinkets that drew your eyes to the finer details of her set up, and a couple decorative pillows. The rest of the room was darker. Her duvet on the queen sized bed was a forest green with black tree branches jutting out at odd angles. Small ivory flowers had been embroidered on the fabric. Kyoya felt himself relax the longer he stood in the room.

Bobby looked up and jumped. She stared at Kyoya. The red head pulled her headphones out. "What did I tell you about coming into my room?" she asked sternly.

"Your boyfriends here," Kyoya said moving over to a small reading corner that Bobby set up. So long as he was there, he might as well explore.

Bobby turned her attention to her door as their guest poked his head into the room. "Bradley?"

"You weren't picking up your phone," Bradley said.

"It's on silent and charging on the floor_,"_ Bobby answered. Even she sounded like she didn't want to speak English. Her sentences were slow and calculated as she adjusted to a different grammar structure. "What's up?" She glanced back at Kyoya to find him sitting in her large brown reading chair.

"I can't do dinner tonight," Bradley stated. "I have to meet up with my sister."

Bobby blinked and nodded. "Okay, maybe next time you're available."

Bradley pointed to Kyoya. "New roommate_?_"

"Kyoya Ootori, meet Bradley Wade. Bradley meet Kyoya," Bobby said as she looked back to her computer. She really needed to finish this last paragraph.

Bradley looked at his girlfriend as he leaned against the door. "You've never had a male roommate."

"Variety is the spice of life_,"_ Bobby replied.

"I'll see you at school," Bradley said moving farther into the room. He kissed Bobby before walking out of the room. "Later Kyoya."

Kyoya narrowed his eyes. The two roommates heard the front door open and close. "Sorry Kyoya, I was listening to music. It helps me write, and I didn't hear a thing." Her shift to Japanese was quick and Kyoya felt like he had a mental whiplash. He would have to get used to this kind of arrangement.

Kyoya pulled an old copy of _Romeo and Juliet_ from one of her bookshelves. "Do we have anything in the fridge for dinner?" he asked casually.

Bobby shook her head. "I was going to go out with Brad, so I didn't grab anything."

Kyoya sighed and put the book back in its place. "I'll have to get something then."

Bobby perked up. "Can I come with?" she asked.

Kyoya just stared. "I would be open to that," he said.

Kyoya could eat by himself, in fact, he preferred it. However, there were some… perks to dining with a woman. It gave the impression that Kyoya was taken and therefore shouldn't be pursued.

Bobby shook her head. "I'm so glad that I've been deemed worthy of your companionship," she stated sarcastically. "Give me a few minutes to get ready."

Kyoya pushed himself out of the plush reading chair and headed up to his own room. He grabbed his wallet and keys and put them in his pockets. As he came down Bobby was coming up. She had brushed her hair out and was pulling on a light weight jacket.

"What do you want to get?" Kyoya asked.

"Food," Bobby answered. "As long as you don't ask me to eat bugs, I really don't care. I can eat anything."

Kyoya sighed. This would be much easier if she actually had something in mind. Should he attempt Indian food with the British national? "Do you like Indian food?"

"I love Indian food," Bobby grinned slipping her messenger bag over her shoulder.

0o0o0o0

"So what other classes are you taking?" Bobby asked as they sat a small table in a busy Indian restaurant.

"I'm taking six courses," Kyoya said. "A literature course, Advanced Calculus, German, Physics, Chemistry, and a Statistics course." He took a bite of bright red meat.

Bobby stopped her fork halfway to her mouth. "That's kind of a heavy course load isn't it?" she asked. "Two sciences and two maths?"

"It's nothing that I can't handle," Kyoya answered. "What are you taking?"

"World History during the twentieth century, Romantic Period Literature, Shakespeare, Statistics, and Psychology," Bobby listed. "Basically, I do a lot of essays and reading responses."

"Where does your creative writing come into play with your studies?" Kyoya asked. He had seen her writing a lot, and she had mentioned in passing that it was mostly fiction pieces.

"Nowhere. I just write," Bobby swallowed. "As far as my studies go, general education comes first, you know this. I'm sure Harvard isn't much different. I took my sciences last year, so that I could get some of my prerequisite courses out of the way."

Kyoya nodded. "I guess you read a lot," he said as he remembered her shelves full of books. "What's your favorite?"

Bobby smiled. "That's easy. I mean I have lots of books that I like, but my favorite is 'The Phantom of the Opera'. I saw the play when I was little, fell in love, and read the book." She waved her fork around as she talked, almost as if she was directing an orchestra. Albeit, very poorly.

Kyoya nodded. Bobby stood up and set her napkin on her seat. Kyoya stood up as a polite gesture.

"Excuse me," Bobby said. She made her way to the bathroom and Kyoya turned his attention to the window.

Kyoya spotted Bradley walking out of the Chinese restaurant across the street. He was holding hands with a cute blond. Kyoya looked towards the bathroom. He looked back to find Bradley kissing the blond before they continued walking down the street.

Bobby came back to the table and Kyoya stood up once more. He couldn't afford to be rude. Bobby as a friend was growing on him. The two of them sat down and Kyoya looked at Bobby over the edge of his glasses. "Tell me about Bradley."

"He's a theater major," Bobby smiled as she continued eating her food. "He's pretty close to his sister."

"Does he have a brother?"

"No, Brooklyn's his younger sister," Bobby answered. She resumed eating.

Well, that blew that possibility out of the water. Twins were easy scapegoats. How often had Hikaru and Kaoru switched places.

"Does she look like him?" Kyoya imagined a female version of mountain man and he had to shiver.

"Same hair, lighter eyes," Bobby said. "Why all the questions about Brad?"

"Just trying to find out more about you and your friends," Kyoya lied. So the blond wasn't his sister...


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter Four:

Kyoya pushed himself away from his desk. It had taken him three hours, but he had finally finished his paper on Jonathan Swift's _A Modest Proposal. _Swift was a master of satire and this was his greatest piece of sarcastic wit ever made. Kyoya was happy to call it one of his favorite written works. If only because the thesis was a lose-lose situation. On one hand, if you agreed with his proposal to eat babies, than you were crazy. And on the other hand, if you disagreed with his proposal, you would then have to come up with a better way to feed the people of Ireland.

He heard the front door open then close. "I'm home," Bobby shouted.

Kyoya raised an eyebrow. He hadn't been living with Bobby long, but he knew that she wasn't quite right. There was a hesitation in her words. She didn't sound all too happy either. Kyoya's inner host nagged at him to go downstairs. Well, now that his paper was done and all his other work was completed, he could afford to check in on his roommate.

Kyoya pushed himself out of his chair and stretched. His back gave off a series of much needed pops and cracks as he let out a satisfied sigh.

When he came downstairs, he found Bobby counting the money in her wallet. She looked up to the ceiling as she did some mental math.

"Is everything all right?" Kyoya asked.

"Bradley cancelled our date again," Bobby sighed. "Probably because he's going to see Vanessa."

"Who's that?" Kyoya asked. Could she be the blond he saw Bobby's boyfriend with?

"The girl he's cheating on me with," Bobby answered casually. Bobby looked at Kyoya, "But I suppose you know about her seeing as everyone else does. When did you find out?"

"The day I met him," Kyoya answered. And there were a few times he had seen the two around town. He had wondered if he should have told Bobby, but she hadn't been making efforts to see Bradley, so he assumed that she was aware of the situation. "If you know he's cheating on you, then why don't you dump him?"

"Because I want to do it publically."

"Why?"

"He's been walking around Boston with Vanessa on his arm. My schoolmates know I know. People keep asking me when I'll dump the little prick. I want to make sure he knows that I'm not some fool he can toy with. I'm just not sure how to do it."

"Are you sure that's wise?" Kyoya asked. It seemed like making the break up public would hurt Bobby before it helped her.

"I will not be the fool!" Bobby stated harshly stomping her foot childishly.

"Making your break up public would only give the impression that you're immature and an attention seeker. What are you proving when you make a big scene. Unless you're an actor I don't really see the point in it." Kyoya shook his head. He told himself that he wouldn't get involved, and here he was, getting involved.

Bobby stopped dead in her thoughts. She walked slowly over to the couch and fell onto its plush cushions helplessly. She buried her face in her hands. "How could I be so stupid," she asked.

"Why did you get together with him in the first place," Kyoya asked. Surely there was something that indicated that Bradley was someone you couldn't trust with your heart. Kyoya knew he was off, so why didn't Bobby?

Bobby looked up as Kyoya walked into the kitchen. "He was sweet and charming."

Kyoya grabbed a kettle and filled it with water. He knew how that went. Kyoya was the master of sweet and charming when he was looking to get something. "A real silver tongue?"

Kyoya came over to the couch as he waited for the water to boil. He sat down next to Bobby as she stared at her hands blankly. "We met in my English class last year. He used Shakespeare grab my attention. I'd fall for any guy who understands Shakespeare."

Kyoya smiled. "Any guy?" he asked. He'd be lying if he said he wasn't tempted to quote a few lines from _Hamlet_ or _Othello. _But there was no merit. Bobby was a woman who didn't come from a rich family. He could just tell by the way she dressed and talked. He didn't even need to look into her. She told him everything. All he had to do was smile.

Bobby gave Kyoya a weak smile and a shrug. "I'm a nerd when it comes to books. Old books make me happy. It's a real shame that they're so expensive."

"You have a rather old copy of _Romeo and Juliet_ in your bedroom," Kyoya stated. "All the other books are new though."

"It belonged to my mother. She gave it to me when I got accepted to school here in the states," Bobby explained. "She got me interested in Shakespeare when I was a small child."

"Why do you like Shakespeare so much?" Kyoya asked. They were slowly moving away from Bradley and into more light conversation. The kind that Kyoya had mastered long ago.

"The man knew how to write. Anyone, who can make my heart pitter patter with words, has my upmost respect."

"_Love looks not with the eyes, but with the mind_," Kyoya smirked.

Bobby grinned. He had to pick a line from her favorite play. She leaned over and kissed him on the cheek. She jumped up quickly and jogged to her flight of stairs. "Thank you Kyoya," she said. "I know what to do now."

0o0o0o0

The next day Kyoya entered his shared home to find Bradley seated on the couch. The young Ootori was immediately displeased, but curious at the same time. The heir dropped his backpack onto one of the dining room chairs and looked at the visitor.

Bradley smiled innocently. "Hey man_."_

Bobby came out of her room. "Ahh, Kyoya, welcome home," She smiled as she skipped over to her roommate. She wrapped her arms around Kyoya's neck and pulled him close. "Play along. Okay?" she said sweetly.

"What?" Kyoya asked.

Bobby took the heir by surprise when she planted her soft pink lips on his. She placed a hand on his cheek gently as his eyes widened ever so slightly. He placed his hands on her hips in a reluctant effort to push her away. As she backed up, he couldn't stop looking at her mischievous green eyes.

Bobby looked at Bradley who was slack jawed. "I imagine the look on your face is somewhat akin to the look on my face when I saw you snogging Vanessa," she said crossing her arms. Her English held the crispness Kyoya had come to identify with the British. "Get out, and don't ever speak to me again."

"You were cheating on me?" Bradley asked in an octave higher than his normal range.

"I said get out," Bobby grunted.

Bradley shot up from his place on the couch, fist clenched, and nostrils flared. "You were seeing this pretty boy while you were with me?" he questioned.

"Get out!" Bobby shouted. "Don't say anything else and get the hell out of my house!"

Bradley stomped over to Bobby, obviously mad that he had been caught in his own deception. Kyoya watched carefully as Bobby shot her ex a challenging glare. Bobby had become a companion of sorts, and he would be damned if he let Bradley lay a hand on her in rage.

"She told you to leave," Kyoya stated. "I think you should do just that."

Bradley looked at the two roommates before pushing Bobby roughly out of the way. He wrenched the front door open before slamming it shut upon his departure.

Kyoya looked at Bobby to see if she was all right. "Are you okay?"

Bobby nodded as she stared at the door dully. "I apologize for kissing you so abruptly," she said as she rubbed her shoulder. "I'll be in my room if you need anything."

Bobby quickly disappeared into her room and left Kyoya to his thoughts. Despite the rude action on her part, he had to admit her strawberry flavored chap stick tasted good on his lips.


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter Five:

Kyoya was walking to his car when he felt his pocket vibrate. He could ignore the call by pulling the device from his pocket, but at that point he should just answer the wretched thing. Kyoya could be too picky about phone calls though. It could be someone related to his father's affairs. It was practice for when he took the Ootori enterprise. Everything the young heir did was in preparation for what was bound to come.

He was surprised to see Bobby's face displayed on the screen. For one, he never took pictures on his phone, and two, he was fairly certain that he had never given Bobby his number. He supposed that she could have taken his phone when he wasn't looking and entered her number and took his information down. He would have to talk to her about that.

Now he had a dilemma. Should he answer the phone? She hadn't spoken to him since she kissed him last week. It was obvious that she was trying to avoid him. Perhaps he should just give her some space. Anytime he was home, she would quickly dart into the confines of her room as her cheeks became red in embarrassment.

He answered anyway. "Hello?" he asked casually as he stopped next to his silver sports car.

"Kyoya," Bobby moaned quietly. "I need your help."

Kyoya raised an eyebrow. This was different. He didn't normally receive out of the blue requests for assistance from pretty girls. In fact, he couldn't recall one time that someone had asked personally for his help while he had been in Boston.

"Why are you whispering?" Kyoya asked curiously. There had to be a reason for her low tone.

"I'm not allowed to use cell phones in a hospital," Bobby answered.

Hospital? "Are you okay?" Kyoya asked standing up a little straighter. Now he was actually concerned for his roommate.

"I have a bruised rib and a concussion, but I'm fine," Bobby said. "I just need you to come pick me up."

"What happened?" Kyoya asked as he leaned against the door of his car. He put one leg over the other as he leaned forward slightly to stare at the pavement.

"Kyoya, I just need you to pick me up," Bobby whined. "I don't like this place." Dare he say it, but she sounded scared.

Kyoya sighed. He couldn't deny a damsel in distress, but he still wanted to know what happened. "Will you tell me what happened?" he questioned.

There was a paused on the line as Bobby thought about his request. "Do you promise to stay the cool, calm, and collected guy I live with?"

"Depends, is what happened to you going to anger me?" Kyoya asked. Had someone hurt her?

"Kyoya," Bobby whined once more.

"Okay, I promise," Kyoya stated. He really didn't want to hear her whine again. Something stirred within him when she did. He still had yet to define the feeling. "Where are you?" he asked as he pulled his keys out to get in his car.

0o0o0o0

Kyoya entered the busy Boston emergency room and had a slight moment of claustrophobia. The room was full of screaming children, moaning men and women, and concerned family members. This couldn't be the only waiting room could it? He straightened his shirt and made his way over to the desk nurse. "I'm here to pick up my roommate. She came in with a concussion and a bruised rib_,"_ he said. "Her name is Barbara Masters."

The nurse looked up from some paperwork and blinked. This was **her** roommate? She didn't look like the type to have this man as her roommate. His light brown slacks and cream cashmere sweater were a shocking contrast to her torn jeans, and paint spattered flannel shirt.

Kyoya raised an eyebrow when the nurse didn't respond. _"_Barbara Masters_?"_ he asked.

"_Right."_ The nurse sputtered as she opened a drawer. "We had to take her cell phone away from her," she said ask she held out the iPhone.

Kyoya took the cell phone and mentally shook his head. These devices seemed to be the life lines of so many. Including Bobby. He could understand her attachment to her phone. She talked with her parents in the United Kingdom. They were divorced so she couldn't talk to them in one phone call. Going to school in the states had to be hard for Bobby.

"I'll have someone bring her out. She's signed her release forms already_,"_ the nurse stated as she avoided eye contact.

A few minutes later Bobby was jumping out of a wheel chair and clinging to Kyoya's arms. "Are we getting out of here?" she asked.

Kyoya looked at her in shock. "Yes," he answered.

"Miss Masters, you should be in a wheel chair_," _a nurse scolded.

"Pish posh," Bobby shrugged. She looked at her phone in Kyoya's hand. "Is that my phone?"

"Yes," Kyoya held it out for her to take. Bobby grabbed the phone and took Kyoya's hand in her smaller one as she began texting. She pulled Kyoya out of the ER.

"Thank god you showed up when you did. I was about to go stir crazy."

Bobby was about to walk in the path of an oncoming car when Kyoya pulled her into his chest. He wrapped an arm around her small waist as the passing car blared their horn.

"You only just got out of the ER. Let's not put you back in it," Kyoya grunted.

Bobby turned in his arm as he held her close. "Thank you," she grinned before she began to text again.

Kyoya shook his head. "Let's go before you kill us both," he sighed. He moved his hand so that it was barely touching the middle of her back. "Now you may cross the street," he whispered.

The hair on the back of Bobby's neck stood up as Kyoya's breath tickled her ear. She giggled and hugged her phone to her chest.

"Okay," she chirped.

"Bobby, did they give you a pain killer?" Kyoya asked her warily.

Bobby nodded quickly as she hummed a British sea chant. "They gave me vicaden!" she laughed as she said the last word.

Kyoya grabbed Bobby's shoulders and pointed her in the direction of his car. He had sudden flashbacks of his days with the host club. He had now become Bobby's babysitter instead of Tamaki's.

When they got to the condo Bobby plopped herself down on the couch. She put a leg over her knee and linked her fingers. "Kyo-kun is a big softie," she stated with a big smile.

"Don't call me that," Kyoya said as he took a deep breath. Really, only Hani-senpai could use that nickname, and he still hated it.

"Kyo-kun," she sang slowly. She watched his face as Kyoya's eye started to twitch. "Why do you hate the name so?" she asked.

Kyoya clenched his fist. "Bobby how did you end up with a concussion and a broken rib?"

"I fell down a flight of stairs," Bobby frowned. She didn't want to let him know how it happened. She just wanted to sleep.

"How did you manage that?"

"Missed a step on the way down." Bobby lied. She stood up and spun around and smiled. "But, I'm okay. See?" she stopped and clutched her side. "Oww."

Kyoya let a small snicker escape his lips. He walked over to Bobby and gently sat her back down on the couch. "Because you have a concussion we have to monitor your sleep."

"Okay," Bobby nodded as she looked up at him. "What does that mean?" she asked as she placed her hands in her lap.

"I have to keep you awake for twenty-four hours, or if you must sleep, I have to wake you up every two hours," Kyoya explained. This was a simple procedure he had seen done when one of his brother's had gotten a concussion as a child. He remembered how his sister fussed over him and would continuously mutter the steps to be taken under her breath.

"How do we do that? The keeping me awake part?"

Kyoya pulled out his cell phone and set an alarm to go off in two hours. "Do you have school work to do over the weekend?"

Bobby shook her head. "Nuh-uh. It's a novel writing weekend for me."

Kyoya hadn't really seen Bobby write. That would be interesting. "All right. Why don't you get set up at the dining room table, and I'll bring my work down."

"Can I write on the couch?" Bobby asked. "I feel more comfortable over there.

Kyoya sighed. He really had to stop doing that. "Do what you want," he said.

Bobby jumped up and ran down to her room groaning all the way. Kyoya slowly made his way to his room. He grabbed his computer and statistics book planning on getting a head start on the one hundred problems that would be assigned next week. He liked his teacher's clear plan. He was given a list of assignments and due dates at the beginning of the year and now he could get all his work out of the way. Another perk was the online submission.

"Kyo-kun, why is your room so bland?" Bobby's voice came from behind him.

Kyoya turned to find Bobby wrapped in a plaid flannel blanket. Her laptop was hugged tightly to her chest. She had pulled her hair up into a messy bun and she wore a pair of simple black plastic rimmed glasses. She must have taken her contacts out before coming up.

"You're not supposed to be up here," Kyoya said as he walked towards her. "Now go downstairs."

Kyoya found himself playing father to a grown up child. How was it that he always managed to become friends with the weird ones? It wasn't like he went out searching for them. It just seemed to happen, and the Classic Cool Kyoya Ootori was not suited for weird.

Two hours later, Kyoya looked over at the couch from his spot at the dining room table. Bobby was just staring at her computer screen as if she were in a daze. Was something wrong? "Bobby?" he asked warily. All he need was a simple response.

Bobby snapped to attention and some of her curls fell in her face. "Yes?" she asked.

"Are you okay?"

"Yep. You'll notice that my 'writing time'" she used finger quote as she grinned. "Involves me staring off into space. That just means I'm thinking."

Kyoya nodded and pushed himself away from the table. He came over to the couch and sat down. "Can I see what you have so far?" he asked. "Perhaps letting someone look at it will help you."

Bobby closed her laptop and looked at him sternly as her green eyes sparkled. "Not until I finish the first draft," she said shaking her finger. She stopped when a sudden thought struck her. "Can I hug you?"

Kyoya stared blankly, and before he could respond Bobby had her face buried in his chest and her arms wrapped around his waist. "You're so nice and warm," she said. "Lay down," she ordered.

"What?" Kyoya asked quickly.

Bobby pushed his upper body down onto the couch cushion before snuggling up beside him. "You can be my man pillow," she mumbled as her eyes drifted close. She hugged him close.

Kyoya tried to move Bobby from his side, but her head was resting on his shoulder. The woman's body was strategically placed so that he could not escape. He let out an aggravated moan as he made himself comfortable. He pulled his phone from his pocket and set it to vibrate.

One thing was for sure. Kyoya Ootori was in for a long night.


	6. Chapter 6

Chapter Six:

Kyoya sat up in his bedroom wondering how his living situation could possibly get worse. He pushed his computer away in aggravation. The feelings that yanked and pulled at his insides, and his constantly spinning head had given him a horrible case of insomnia. He couldn't focus on the text in front of him. He barely stayed awake in class. This simply wasn't cutting it.

Kyoya pushed himself out of his desk chair and made his way to the main living area. He let out a tired sigh when he didn't find what he was looking for, or rather, whom he was looking for. Kyoya made his way down Bobby's flight of stairs. He opened her door and peeked his head into the quiet room.

Bobby was already in her pajamas even though it was two in the afternoon. She was sitting in her reading corner. Her lips moved as she carefully read the words of Chaucer's 'The Wife of Bath's Tale'. White ear buds hung from the sides of her head, and Kyoya could pick out the sounds of faint classical music.

"When are you going to talk to me?" Kyoya asked.

Bobby screamed and jumped up in her seat. She ripped her headphones out as she stared at Kyoya. "What the bloody hell is wrong with you!" She yelled. She grabbed a pillow off of the ground and threw it at her roommate.

Kyoya winced as he caught the pillow effortlessly. "Very mature," he deadpanned.

"Get out of my room," Bobby yelled.

Kyoya wasn't about to back down. It had been a week since the two of them spent the night on the couch. After Bobby sobered up from her pain meds, she stopped speaking to Kyoya. That simply wasn't acceptable in Kyoya's book, and things needed to change.

"No," Kyoya said simply. If she was going to ignore that night and the position she put him in, then he was going to make sure that she didn't have a moment of peace.

"What do you mean no?" Bobby asked standing up. She put her hands on her hips as she arched an eyebrow.

Kyoya raised one of his eyebrows mockingly. "We need to talk. Your behavior has left me severely sleep deprived, and I would prefer it if my Ivy League education didn't go to waste."

"Kyoya, I don't have time for your talk. I'm studying," she said as she looked at the ground. She looked at her book that had fallen on the ground. She bent over and picked it up to fix the bent pages. After a minute she closed the book and set it down on the small table next to her chair.

So, you're just going to ignore the fact we spent the night on a couch together," Kyoya said.

"Nothing happened," Bobby stated. "I apologized for my actions, but surely you must realize that I had no clue what I was doing while doped up." She honestly didn't remember anything that happened that night. All she knew was that she woke up on the couch with Kyoya hugging her close. He later said that she used him as a 'man-pillow' and he was only hugging her to keep her from falling off of the couch.

Kyoya rolled his eyes. This girl was unbelievable. "Then there's also the day you kissed me."

"To get my cheating boyfriend away from me!" Bobby shouted. She took a deep break to get her flustered nerves under control. "I'm sorry, Kyoya. I never meant to put you in a situation where you would be uncomfortable. I've always been a tad impulsive, and I do thing without thinking rationally."

"That's an understatement," Kyoya scoffed. He watched Bobby clench her fist.

"Kyoya," Bobby growled as her British temper started to rise. She narrowed her eyes and crossed her arms. "Do not push me when I'm trying to apologize for my rather uncouth behavior."

Kyoya smirked and walked towards Bobby. Out of instinct, Bobby backed up suddenly. She fell into her seat as Kyoya leaned over her. "What are we going to do about this?" he whispered. It was time for him to get back at her.

"Kyoya, what are you doing?" Bobby asked as she swallowed hard. She stared at his mischievous obsidian eyes. She bit her lip as he placed his hands firmly on the arms of the chair.

Kyoya took in every inch of Bobby's startled expression. He smirked as she swallowed. Her hair fell in front of her face. A small ginger curl barely touched her cheek. Kyoya reached up and tucked the lock behind her ear. With another smirk he backed up and stood straight.

As he started for the door, Bobby blinked and watched him leave, rooted to her spot in the chair. Shock, confusion, embarrassment, and anger were only a small amount of the conflicting emotions that were rushing through her synapses. As he door clicked shut, she shook he head. "You're on Kyoya Ootori," she said darkly when she realized what just happened. "You're on."

This was a battle of resolve and wit. She made him feel uncomfortable, so he was going to put her in the same spot. The two of them would continue this battle until there was a winner. Bobby didn't know how the winner would be determined, but she would come out victorious. That was for certain. Bobby wouldn't lose to Kyoya Ootori.

Bobby stood up and headed for the stairs. She smiled as she looked up the stairs to Kyoya's open door. "Sweetie," she cooed sweetly. "What do you want for dinner? I'll go to the store and get some food."

Kyoya gritted his teeth, but he knew this would happen. He actually wanted it to happen. He wanted to see how far Bobby would take this. It was better than avoiding him. This battle would provoke interaction, and might be a lot fun in the long run. Of course she wouldn't win. Kyoya was sure of it.

"I'm sure whatever you cook will be great, Honey," Kyoya said with a smile.

"Study hard," Bobby sung as she headed for the front door. "We don't want your Ivy League education to go to waste!"


	7. Chapter 7

Chapter Seven:

Bobby fell onto her mattress tiredly. It had been a long day at school, and all she wanted to do was sleep. She couldn't of course. There was work to be done. The homework had piled up, and she would be kept very busy with it, but she would be kept even busier if she wanted to stay three steps ahead of Kyoya Ootori.

A battle of wits had commenced, and the two roommates were unrelenting in their efforts to fell the other. The banter was endless and the trickery was unyielding. Bobby's greatest masterpiece was hacking into Kyoya's laptop (Which wasn't hard once she figured out the password was MUSICNo3.) and changed the names of his files to that of literary characters throughout history. She made a key of what was what and left it for Kyoya. He could right everything in the end, but it would take some time.

Unfortunately, she wasn't the only one messing with someone else. Kyoya had rearranged her book shelves in reverse alphabetical order while she was away at work. It was tedious task, but Bobby had managed to get everything in its proper place after a couple hours.

Bobby turned on her side as she wondered what would happen next. Was Kyoya growing tired? Bobby didn't think she could keep things going. She was running out of suitable tricks, and at the very beginning of this battle both had come to some sort of mutual understanding that school, reputation, and friendship was simply off limits. All of their tomfoolery was conducted inside the walls of their condo, and it would remain that way until there was a clear winner. There had to be a modicum of sensibility about this whole thing.

Bobby heard the door open and knew that Kyoya was back from whatever it was that he had gone off to do. She wouldn't put it past him if he had found some new trick in a toy store, or joke shop. She had just spent the entire Sunday at the university library, but she couldn't say that Kyoya had been at Harvard looking at dusty old books for that one sentence that supported his ten page paper on the World Trade Organization because he hadn't told her what he would be doing.

Bobby closed her eyes determined to just take a small cat nap. She could do her homework later. All she needed was a little sleep, and maybe then she could function in society once more.

"This is such a nice little home," a flamboyant voice pulled her from her thoughts of slumber.

Her eyes snapped open and she pushed herself up. She had never been more awake then she was at the moment. That wasn't Kyoya. It was someone else. Someone else was in her home. Someone unwelcome. Bobby slipped off her bed and bent over to pull a bat from under her bed. She held it tightly in her hands and lifted it up as she moved to the stairs. She slowly made her away up the steps as the voice continued to sing praise of the houses interior design.

Bobby lifted the bat higher as she entered the main living area. She stopped dead in her tracks and lowered the bat when she saw Kyoya making tea in the kitchen and a blond Asian fluttering about the living room.

The blond turned to face Bobby and gave her a princely smile. "You must be Bobby," he said with a debonair flourish of his hands.

Bobby eyed him warily before she turned her attention to Kyoya. "We have a guest?" she asked stiffly as she rested the bat against the wall. "I wasn't aware that we would be having company."

"It must have slipped my mind," Kyoya shrugged lightly. He aimed a fake smiled in Bobby's direction.

Tamaki sauntered over. "It's so lovely to meet the beautiful princess living with Kyoya. He is so lucky to have a roommate like you." Tamaki took Bobby's hand in his and kissed it gently.

Bobby's cheeks turned bright red and she yanked her hand back quickly. She stepped back and bumped into the wall. "Who the hell are you?" she asked.

Tamaki put a hand delicately over his head and prepared to introduce himself. "My name is Tamaki Suoh. Kyoya and I went to high school together."

"Oh great," Bobby muttered in Irish. "He's getting help from an old chum_."_

"Did you say something?" Kyoya asked.

Bobby moved away from the wall and grabbed her shoulder bag off of the dining room table and slipped it over her shoulder. "Nothing, Kyoya," Bobby said. She smiled over at Tamaki politely. "I'll be making some stir fry for dinner. Will you be staying?"

"You'll be cooking dinner for me?" Tamaki asked as he clasped his hands and tears brimmed in his eyes at the prospect of a home cooked meal. Of course, Haruhi made dinner for him all the time, but to have someone he didn't really know offer to make food. It was a pleasurable feeling to say the least.

Bobby felt her eye twitch. She had done her research when it came to the host club. She wasn't all too sure if this Tamaki fella was all too bright, but she knew that looks could be deceiving. "I make dinner most of the time. Kyoya doesn't know how to cook, so he's hopeless in that area," Bobby said while she mentally smirked.

Kyoya took a breath before looking up. "Do you need any assistance with the shopping? I'm sure we could both help you out if necessary."

Bobby felt her face lose all of its color. Her jaw fell slack. She shook her head quickly. "That's not necessary," she said quickly.

She moved to the door, but Kyoya moved in front of her. He smiled mischievously as his glasses glinted in the light. "I insist," he said with a tight smile.

"We're going shopping?" Tamaki asked hopefully. He walked over to Kyoya. "I love supermarkets!"

Bobby rolled her eyes and gently pushed Kyoya out of the way. She opened the door and let out an annoyed grunt. Tamaki looked at Kyoya questioningly before following her into the hall.

Kyoya smirked in triumph. He had irked Bobby, and all that was left to do was push her over the edge. Bobby would relent eventually. He wasn't one to give up when presented with a challenge, and what a challenge indeed. This would certainly be an interesting experience for the two of them.

0o0

Bobby was walking down the baking good aisle of the local supermarket. Headphones hung from her ears as she listened to some music. She thought about making a cake for her guest. Even if she and Kyoya were having a little game, she couldn't afford to be rude to their guest. Her parents had raised her right.

She grabbed some cocoa powder as she came up with an idea. She would make some special cookies. She reached up to grab some sugar. She pulled her hand back when a hand came out of nowhere and grabbed the pack of sugar. She looked up to see Tamaki smiling at her. He handed the sugar over as she pulled her headphones out.

Bobby dropped the sugar into her cart and nodded at Tamaki in thanks. She pulled her headphones out and tucked them into her purse. "Where's the Shadow King?" she asked as she pushed the cart farther down the aisle.

"He's in the fresh fruit section," Tamaki answered. "I thought I would come find you. Are you planning on baking something?" he asked as he looked at the cart contents.

Bobby smiled at him. She liked Tamaki. He was polite, kind, and despite his childish behavior, there was a maturity to him that wasn't lost of the young woman. "I'll be making some cookies for dessert. They don't involve an oven, so it should be interesting to do."

Tamaki nodded. He didn't quite understand what she meant by cookies that didn't require an oven, but he would wait and see how it was done back at the condo. He looked down at her. "I'm not sure what kind of game you have going with Kyoya, but I want you to beat him at it," Tamaki stated. He had figured out what was going on while they were driving to the store. All the creative jabs veiled in a compliment or simple statement were not so abstract as to confuse the Host Club's king. "Kyoya has spent a large majority of his life under a lot of pressure that comes with being a member of the Ootori family. What you're doing, it's opening him up to new things, new experiences. Don't make it easy, don't let him win. He needs more people who can give him a fun challenge, but he can't win them all."

Bobby stopped walking and stared at the blond. She pulled her red curls away from her face as she thought about what he had just said. She smiled and pushed the cart once again. "I have no intentions of letting him win. There's no fun in losing this time. If I lose, I'll have to find a new place to live because I'm afraid that losing would mean that I'm not worthy of staying."

Tamaki smiled. He knew that would end up this way. Ultimately, this was a fight to see who could fall for the other first when in truth; they had both fallen for the other. They were just afraid to admit it.

"You're smarter than you look," Bobby said as she reached the end of the aisle. She saw Kyoya walking towards them.


	8. Chapter 8

Chapter Eight:

Kyoya had no clue why he had offered to pick Bobby up from work, but a part of him knew that coming to an office was sure to get him some attention and embarrass Bobby, so he felt like it was worth it in the end. Bobby had called him and said that her own car was at the shop getting the engine replaced after a piston blew. She said she was stranded and had reluctantly called Kyoya hoping he could give her a number for a taxi. The Internet was down in her office and she couldn't look one up herself.

He now sat on a stool in the small cramped office space as Bobby quickly moved around shelving files, sending faxes, and answering the phones with barely a breath in between. She kept muttering about "the other receptionist" and "abandonment."

"I'm so sorry, Kyoya," Bobby started apologizing a few minutes later when she finished closing up the front reception area. She pulled her red curls away from her red face as she turned the phones voicemail on. "I didn't expect you to come so early."

"It's better than being late," Kyoya said. "It looks like you're doing a lot here."

"I have the afternoon shift, Jason has the morning shift," Bobby began to explain as she sank into a desk chair next to a computer. She closed an English textbook and grabbed a stack of unstamped mail. "Colby was the third receptionist. She covered the full day because she doesn't go to school like Jason and I do. Unfortunately, she's a mom, and she had to quit last month because she got pregnant again with her fourth child. My boss hired a new guy, but he quit today because apparently this isn't where he sees his life going."

"So now, you find yourself doing more to cover work for two people," Kyoya nodded in understanding. He got off the stool and looked around. "Are you almost done?"

"I have to stamp this mail and drop in the box across the street, then I can go," Bobby answered. "I'm sorry."

Kyoya walked over. "What do I have to do?" he asked. The faster this could get done, the sooner they would be on their way back to the condo.

Bobby stated at him. "Are you offering to help?" she asked suspiciously.

Kyoya nodded and Bobby didn't waste any time in handing him a stack of mail. "This is all standard mail. A forever stamp will cover the cost to send them. I'll stamp the heavier mail," Bobby smiled and turned to work on her own healthy stack.

Kyoya quickly worked on the stack of mail and finished just before Bobby pressed one last stamp on her own pile. Bobby happily smiled and took Kyoya's mail.

"You do know that the rest of the office can't understand a word you're saying," a voice came from a medium sized cubicle. It was a southern accent, and the English came out lazy and drawn out.

Kyoya looked over to see a middle aged woman looking at him. A set of dictation headphones hung from around her neck. She had long dark hair pulled into a tight bun. Kyoya looked at the ground to see a small black dog poking its head from under her desk. This was sightly surprising. He never would have expected a law office to have a dog. Then again, if he considered Bobby's overly casual appearance, he should have expected that the office was lenient when it came to how it was run. Jeans and a t-shirt wasn't typical law office wear.

"Sorry, Lucille," Bobby laughed. "Kyoya's from Japan, so we speak Japanese at home."

"I thought you left Japanese Immersion back in England," Lucille said. "I don't see why you have to have a Japanese boy toy live with you so you can keep up with the language." She winked at Kyoya and smiled.

Bobby turned beat red while Kyoya turned away. "We aren't dating_,"_ Bobby forced out.

Lucille put her headphones back in so she could get back to work. "Could have fooled me with the looks on your faces._"_

"Have a good night, Lucille_,"_ Bobby sighed. She moved to the back of the office to bid farewell to the other office workers.

Kyoya looked down to find the dog from before standing in front of him. It pawed at his leg for attention. It was a small Scottish Terrier and it stared up at him while it wagged it's tail.

Bobby came out and her face lit up when she saw the dog out and about. "Lolly!" she cooed. She crouched down and scratched the dog behind its ears. "I bet you're ready to go home."

"Lolly?" Kyoya asked.

"Lolita," Bobby grinned up at him. She walked over to the desk she had been sitting at and tossed her English book into her backpack and hoisted it onto her shoulders. "Ready?"

"She named her dog Lolita?" Kyoya asked.

"She's a fan of Russian Literature," Bobby shrugged. "I had a dog names Titania growing up."

"A Midsummer Night's Dream?" Kyoya guess knowing it was her favorite. He walked over to the back entrance. "Let's go."

Bobby grabbed a set of keys and opened the door. "Thank you for picking me up," she said. She waited for Kyoya to walk out. She locked the door and followed Kyoya out of the building. "My car just… blew up sort of. My dad is paying for its repair, but it'll take a couple days until they can get the engine."

"How are you going to get to school?" Kyoya asked. At their age, they couldn't rent cars. It wasn't allowed for insurance purposes.

Bobby was silent as she fiddled with the pile of mail. When she slid her eyes up to look at Kyoya, she found him glancing at her.

"Were you hoping I would drive you?" Kyoya asked.

"No!" Bobby said loudly as they entered a small parking lot. "I don't need a ride to school I should be able to take the bus."

Kyoya unlocked his Audi and opened his door. "Drop off your mail and we'll continue this conversation when you get back."

Bobby hurried off and returned a minute later her hands free of mail. She slipped into the passenger seat and looked at Kyoya.

"The bus isn't as precise as a car. Schedule wise and location wise that is. What time does your first class start tomorrow?"

"Kyoya, you don't have to. I was looking at busses earlier while at school. I could get a taxi too, if I have to," Bobby said as she hugged her bag close. She avoided Kyoya's piercing black eyes.

"It's no trouble, so long as it doesn't conflict with my schedule."

Bobby looked out the window. Their battle of wits was still in play. It only dwindles when they were truly in need of the other, but the pranks were still going on. Kyoya ended up with a drawn on mustache one morning, and Kyoya had replaced a portion of her books with empty ledgers. Despite the pranks they had an amicable relationship in the condo. Bobby had made a nice dinner for Kyoya after he spent the entire day at Harvard's Library working on an essay, and in return, he had presented her with some new notebooks for her novel writing. But, just because they did nice things for each other, it didn't mean that Bobby trusted Kyoya enough to give her a ride to school the next day. He could be working toward some other ulterior motives.

"What time does your class start?" Kyoya repeated as he pulled out of his parking space.

"9:15," Bobby said reluctantly. She gave up on trying to fight it. She only needed to mentally tell herself that there was nothing hidden behind Kyoya's offer.

"I'll expect you to be ready to leave at 8:30. I have a class that starts at 10:45, so I should be able to drop you off and be on time for class myself," Kyoya said.

"Thank you," Bobby whispered.

0o0o0o0

Kyoya found himself safely tucked away in his room later that night. He had just finished his work for the night when his computer started ringing. He glanced at the small window that had popped up. Tamaki was requesting a video chat while he was on his lunch break at school.

Kyoya answered after the third ring. "Hello, Tamaki," he greeted dully. "How are you?"

"I'm great!" Tamaki cried. "I tell you, taking some time to visit everyone is going to be difficult right now, but I'll make time for it. Friendship is important."

"Why can't you just wait for our winter holidays to begin? We'll all be coming back then," Kyoya wasn't going to attempt to reason with the blond, but he thought he would just make that point clear.

"But what about Kaoru and Hikaru? I bet they're lonely because they aren't around the Host Club."

"I assure you, Kaoru and Hikaru are both doing fine. Don't you read their emails?" Kyoya said dryly.

"You mean they aren't lies to hide their loneliness?" Tamaki asked. "There actually is a girl named Faye?"

"Yes, and Kaoru has dinner with some neighbors every night." Kyoya started pulling up some windows to review the summary of the twins lives at their separate colleges. He thought about sending it to Tamaki. Bullet points seemed to be more his speed sometimes.

"How's Bobby?" Tamaki asked.

"She blew a piston in her car," Kyoya said casually.

"Her car blew up!" Tamaki shouted.

Kyoya felt his eye twitched. "No," he said through gritted teeth. "Tamaki, I have an early start tomorrow. I suggest we continue this conversation another time."

Kyoya pushed himself away from the desk and moved to close his laptop. This effectively shut Tamaki up for the night. It wasn't that he didn't enjoy talking to his best friend; he just didn't want Tamaki freaking out about something so close to bed. Tomorrow was sure to be interesting as well. He had never been to Boston University.

0o0o0o0

When Kyoya parked in front of Boston University, he didn't expect to stay long. But he saw something that made him stop.

Bobby, after saying good-bye to him, had walked off towards her literature class. She was passing a group of pastel clad women when she fell to the ground.

Kyoya couldn't identify the feeling that provoked him to move, but in an instant he was pulling the keys from the car's ignition and was marching over to Bobby.

Bobby was quickly on her feet again and looked at Kyoya in surprise. "I thought you were gone," she said. She started examining her scratched hands. They had started to bleed only slightly.

"Are you okay?" Kyoya asked looking her over.

"Maybe you should watch your step," a high pitched voice sneered.

Kyoya turned and looked at one of the women. He recognized her easily. The blond haired, blue eyed college student was the girl Bradley had been cheating on Bobby with. He knew in his gut that Bobby had been intentionally tripped.

"I believe you owe Bobby an apology," Kyoya said politely as his fist balled at his sides. "You tripped her_."_

"In your dreams, China Man_,"_ the girl said stiffly.

"Don't let her get to you," Bobby whispered closely into Kyoya's ear. She kept a hand on his shoulder and held him close to her. She narrowed her eyes at the woman. "Vanessa, this isn't the place to cause a scene over something so petty."

Kyoya looked at Bobby. Realization dawned on him even further. "That day I picked you up from the hospital," he said slowly. "Did she push you down the stairs?"

Bobby was silent and looked down. Kyoya pulled away from her and gripped her shoulders. He wanted to know more, and he wanted to know it now. He could care less if Vanessa and her gaggle of friends were watching.

"Kyoya, you're going to be late for class if you don't leave," Bobby said. She didn't meet his eyes.

"Did she push you down the stairs?" Kyoya pressed. He knew the answer. Even if Bobby didn't give her answer.

Kyoya lifted up Bobby's hands and examine the scratches. Bobby pulled them away unsure of what to do. His hands were so gentle despite the anger he seemed to be feeling.

"I have to go," Bobby said quickly. "I'll find my own way home."


	9. Chapter 9

Chapter Eight:

"I have to go," Bobby said quickly. "I'll find my own way home."

Kyoya grabbed her wrist to keep her from walking away. "She pushed you down the stairs, gave you a concussion, and a bruised rib, why are you letting her do this to you?"

"I have no choice, Kyoya!" Bobby hissed before she pulled her wrist free and ran off. She ducked into a building leaving Kyoya with the women who had apparently been making Bobby's school like difficult and as a direct result it had made his life difficult. He was in this game of cat and mouse with Bobby because of the night they spent on the couch when she was high as a kite on Vacadin. At least now he had someone he could place the blame solely on.

Kyoya turned back to his car and got in quickly as he started plotting a proper course of action to take when it came to the turn in events. He would look into Bobby a little more. He had refrained from digging to far into her life in an effort to keep their housing situation as simple as possible. He wasn't really looking for a friend, and so he kept his itchy research fingers to himself. Besides, Bobby had been pretty open about her past and who she was. He saw no reason to dig when he could just ask. He never once saw her lying unless it was that time she lied in front of Bradley, and the time she avoided his questions in the hospital.

Kyoya spent his classes focused on the subject matter, but the minute class ended he found his thoughts straying back to Bobby and he wondered if she really was okay. He quickly got his books from the library hold desk and went to find his car in the garage.

As he approached his car, he paused. Leaning against the trunk of his car was Bobby. She was staring at her phone bobbing her head to music that played out of her headphones. She looked up after a minute of Kyoya standing five feet away. "Are you just going to stand there?" she asked.

"How did you get here?" He walked over to the car.

"There are these wonderful things called taxi cabs, I know rich people like you tend not to use them, but they're useful."

"You're rich," Kyoya said matter-of-factly. "You can get a new car."

"Correction, my Dad is rich and my mother is just a really good investor and a brilliant cellist. I happen to like my car." Bobby stated. "Did you finally do your homework properly?"

"Your dad isn't the accidental tourist, that's your uncle," Kyoya said as he moved to the back seat and opened the door. "Your father runs a security company with two of his brothers. Your dad is former British Intelligence."

"Bravo," Bobby smiled clapping slowly

"However, none of that explains why you let a woman push you down the stairs," Kyoya stated. He gestured for Bobby to get in the car.

Bobby slipped into the passenger seat and stared at Kyoya. "Why does any of this matter to you?" she asked. She crossed her arms and leaned against the window enjoying the cold glass. She grimaced and looked at her hands. "Can we just go home?"

Kyoya turned over the engine and looked over his shoulder as he backed out. "Does she have something on you?" he asked.

"No. It's her dad," Bobbie answered. "He's the dean of undergraduate affairs and can and will have me expelled if I paint his perfect little daughter as the monster she really is. If I'm expelled, I have to go back to London. So I let her trip me and have her fun and tell myself that it won't last for long. I'm transferring at the end of the year anyway."

Kyoya stopped the car as the exit and looked at her. "Where?" He hadn't heard her talking about transfer at all. He dreaded the answer she was about to give. Was she going to leave the area and therefore leave him with the effort to find a new roommate.

"Harvard," Bobby answered. She ran a hand through her hair and sighed. "English degree from Harvard is a great degree, and then grad school in Ireland in Literature and Publishing or Writing."

Kyoya pulled out of the garage and it wasn't long before they were in main Boston headed towards the house. Bobby had been silent the entire ride, offering no more information on herself or what her plans were to last a semester and a half. He started thinking of things that he could do to help her. Could he make a few phone calls? He mentally shook his head. He had neglected to do his homework simply because Bobby cleverly downplayed herself. Even he had heard of her father's security company. They were the "whole enchilada" as Bobby would say. They protected art, buildings, people, banks. They had top of the line security systems. Their sterling reputation was well known in Europe and Asia. There were satellite offices in San Francisco and New York, and smaller Main offices in Dubai, Tokyo, and Berlin.

He turned his attention to what he knew about her mother. Elizabeth Bennett did indeed take her name from _Pride and Prejudice,_ but it was her cello playing that made her soar into fame. She was part of a string quartet that worked and played with the London Symphony. She also happened to be the aunt of Faye Bennett, Hikaru's friend in Paris. This was only a recent revelation on his part and he was reminded just how small the world of the wealthy was when you operated in similar circles. In Bobby and Faye's case it was the British Upper-class. Kyoya's circle was mostly comprised of the Japanese Upper-class with interspersed Europeans.

Bobby's name would be able to open enough doors for her. Kyoya was sure of it. A simple google search could be made by any admissions officer, making the young Ootori feel pretty certain that he would be going to school with Bobby next year.

Still, there was the matter that Bobby was being physically abused while she was at school. There had to be something that he could do about that. He thought about walking her to her classes but immediately rejected that idea. He had to be at Harvard.

"You shouldn't let them abuse you."

Bobby groaned. "Kyoya, leave it alone. I can handle it. Tripping me in a courtyard is nothing. I'm a klutz by default." She looked out the window as Kyoya pulled into the complex's underground parking structure. "If I wanted to retaliate, I very much could. After all, I've bested you a time or six." She smirked as Kyoya turned off the car. She slipped out of the passenger seat and was waiting at the Elevator by the time Kyoya had grabbed his books. Bobby held out her hands in a beckoning manner. "Give me the books."

"I'll hold onto them," Kyoya said eyeing her warily.

"Kyoya, I'm not going to damage books from Harvard. Relax."

Kyoya handed them over as Bobby entered the elevator. She smiled at him and waited for him to hit the button for their floor. Kyoya kept looking to Bobby only to see her staring off into space with a smile on her lips. He couldn't tell if it was because she planning on doing something to Vanessa, or she was planning on doing something to him.

The elevator door opened and Bobby turned around and started walking backwards. "Oh! I forgot to tell you. One of my red socks ended up in a load of your white shirts. I hope you like pink." She laughed and spun around, walking up to their door.

Kyoya narrowed his eyes as he pulled out his keys. Still, he maintained his calm and smiled at Bobby. "And I forgot to tell you that I seem to have misplaced that plaid blanket you love so much."

"That was my mom's!" Bobby shrieked as they entered their home. The two of them paused when they found the living room torn to pieces.

Kyoya saw from the corner of his eyes that Bobby had dropped his books. Her eyes were wide in fright as she backed up and moved back into the hall. She pulled out her phone as Kyoya started walking around the main living area.

"Hi, I'd like to report a break in," Bobby's voice came out shaken as Kyoya left their place. She sank to the floor and leaned against the wall and stared at the open door. She was talking on the phone and if it weren't for the fact that occasionally she would stumble through a sentence as she talked to the dispatcher, she would have sounded perfectly normal to Kyoya. Kyoya grabbed his books from the doorway and stood next to Bobby.

He debated whether or not he should notify his father about this. After all, he had assured his father that this place was safe only to be proven wrong. Worst yet, nothing appeared to be taken, so he wondered what had happened. He dropped his bags and books by Bobby and entered the house.

He walked up to his room and found it torn up, but still nothing had been stolen. He looked in his bathroom and found the mirror was broken. His pile of pink shirts were scattered around the room with what looked like red paint.

He quickly made his way down to Bobby's room and found her bookshelves turned over with the books scattered about and pages torn out. Spray painted above her bed in bright red was "Cheating Whore". Kyoya clenched his fist just as he heard a strangled sob from behind him.

He turned around and found Bobby holding her old worn out copy of Romeo and Juliet. The one that her mom had given her. Even if it wasn't her favorite play, it still held value. Now the book had pages falling out and the front cover was ripped half off. Kyoya took the book from her and put it on one of the plush chairs before he guided her up the stairs to the living room. He sat her down at the dining room table before he went to grab his laptop from his bag. He opened it up as he joined Bobby at the table. He didn't sit across from her like usual. This time he sat next to her as he pulled out his phone.

Kyoya knew who had done this, and while the police could press vandalism charges and breaking and entering, he wanted to do something worse. His place had been invaded, and Bobby's things had been attacked. Now it was time to take action.

Two hours later, Bobby and Kyoya were sitting in the restaurant of the Fairmont Battery Wharf hotel. Bobby was rubbing her forehead in an attempt to chase away the stress prompted headache. "So how long until our place is fixed?" Bobby asked.

"Two days,"Kyoya answered. He took a sip of his coffee and looked at his laptop. He had a photo up of Bobby's former boyfriend.

"Leave him alone, Kyoya," Bobby said quietly. "Bradley is just a messed up guy. If I had known he could pick locks I would have put a door code on the front door and a sliding lock on my room."

"He didn't just destroy your room," Kyoya said maintaining his calm.

"The police are picking him up," Bobby said, though she didn't speak with any conviction. Kyoya took this to mean that she was just as angry as he was, if not more so. After all, he hadn't been called a whore.

"We are going to sue for damages," Kyoya said.

"Kyoya, I'm asking you to leave it alone. Remember the woman he's dating can have me expelled," Bobby said. She stood up and grabbed her shoulder bag. She looked down at the large bag that Kyoya still had with him. "I'm going to bed."

"Take this with you." Kyoya held up the large duffel bag. "You'll need it."

Bobby eyed the bag. "What's in it?"

"You'll see." Kyoya said. "Go get some sleep. What time do you have class tomorrow?"

"Eleven."

"Okay, I'll drop you off."

"You don't have to."

Kyoya looked up at ther and shook his head. "It's on my way."

Bobby rolled her eyes and grabbed the duffell bag. She was tucked away in her room five minutes later. She opened the duffel bag and smiled as she lifted up her mother's plaid blanket. "Kyo-kun really is a big softy."


	10. Chapter 10

Chapter Nine

Kyoya was standing in the hallway of the Fairmont and looked at his watch. Today was already shaping up to be a terrible one. He had gotten a phone call from the workers who were trying to get the condo back in shape, and apparently the couch they had ordered was stuck somewhere in the middle of Nebraska, and the paint for Bobby's room was on back order. The carpet cleaners had to postpone until tomorrow due to a large house that had housed the many trinkets of a recently deceased hoarder. Now, Bobby was taking her sweet time getting ready and they were running behind. Yes, today was the worst day ever.

Bobby's door opened and Kyoya looked up. She was on the phone with someone and was speaking in Irish. She smiled at Kyoya and held out a magazine for him to look at. He wasn't at all surprised to find Hikaru and Kaoru on the cover. He had alerts on his computer monitoring the names. He knew that the two of them were seen out and about with young women. He knew that the purple haired girl in France was Bobby's cousin Faye. He also knew that the masked girl in San Francisco was Kana Tolemei. You couldn't hide things from Kyoya. But just because he knew the masked girl's secret, didn't mean the rest of the world did. Kyoya was just privy to better information and superior deduction skills.

"Thanks, Spence," Bobby finally spoke in English, giving Kyoya a frame of reference. She was talking to her twin. _Why did everyone have to be a twin? _Kyoya thought with dismay. If the two were anything like the Hitachiin's, which he highly suspected to be true, he was convinced that he was going to have to watch his back if the other twin showed up in Boston.

Once Bobby hung up, she smiled apologetically and slipped her phone into her pocket. "Good morning," she said. "Any news on the condo?"

Kyoya took a deep breath as he looked at the list of notes he had made on his phone. "The couch will be here in three days, your paint is on back order, but they'll put the primer up today. Carpets are cleaned tomorrow."

"So we're still here for a couple days," Bobby sighed sadly.

"It would appear so."

They had been at the Fairmont for a week, and while it was really good service, they were both running out of excuses to tell their fathers when it came to the hotel bills. Bobby had told her father that a routine inspection showed some mold in the crawlspace and under the sink of her bathroom. Kyoya repeated the story, and assured his father that he would be back in the condo as soon as they deemed it safe. For some reason, both of them had agreed that admitting that the house had been broken into was not in either of their best interests.

"You were talking to your brother about Faye, weren't you?" Kyoya asked looking at the magazine cover.

Bobby nodded as they walked to the elevator. "I have the feeling that the Chevaliers were behind that article. I can't fly to Paris, but Spencer can certainly take the train there and check in on her."

"You care a lot about your family don't you?" Kyoya asked.

Bobby nodded again as she looked at the magazine in Kyoya's hands. "Friends too." She didn't elaborate. She knew that Kyoya was aware of her social media postings of selfies with Kana. He had been sitting right next to her in a coffee shop when she posted them. At the time, he didn't ask any questions, but later that night, Bobby had been forced to explain before she could get her room key back from him.

Kyoya politely held the elevator open as Bobby stepped in. Bobby thanked him quietly and hit the lobby button. While the two had been at the hotel for the long and torturous week, they had spent less and less time talking to each other and instead would meet in coffee shops and work on homework before they went to their separate rooms. Neither could exactly place why they felt the need to stay away from the other, but there was something scandalous about entering a hotel together and leaving in the morning so the two of them had come to some sort of silent agreement that they wouldn't make it look like something it wasn't.

As soon as Tamaki heard about the break-in he launched into one of his over-zealous monologues where he insisted that Kyoya call his body guards to Boston so that they could protect Bobby. Kyoya constantly reminded Tamaki that if his guards were going to protect anyone, it would be him and not Bobby. Kyoya was an egoist after all and felt his life to be more meaningful. Though he mostly said this to make Tamaki even more upset. There was something exciting about getting a rise out of Tamaki.

Meanwhile, Kyoya had noticed that Bobby was being followed by a particularly fearsome fellow with shaggy black hair who wore a leather jacket. Bobby would acknowledge him with a nod or a slight wave of her hand and the man would disappear faster than he had appeared. Still, she insisted that her father didn't know about the break-in, but would give no further explanation as to why she was being followed by tall, dark, and dangerous. He assured himself that it would no longer be his problem because Bobby's car was fixed and she was picking it up after her classes. Kyoya was no longer her ride to school. Color him pleased.

Twenty minutes later, Kyoya was driving towards Harvard when he saw his phone buzz. He ignored the call and kept his eyes on the road. With a glance in the rearview mirror he narrowed his eyes. A small silver BMW had been following him for the past ten minutes and he debated his next course of action. He had never found himself in a position where he was followed. That just didn't happen to an Ootori. Kyoya took the next exit on the freeway and pulled into a parking lot. The small sports car slipped into the spot next to him as he stepped out.

Kyoya was just the slightest bit surprised to find Bobby's mysterious guardian step out and look at him. "Not many rich kids catch on to my tails," the man said.

Kyoya blinked and just accepted that everyone remotely close to Bobby likely spoke Japanese. "Who are you."

"Max," the man answered. "You the kid's roommate?"

Kyoya nodded as he walked around his car. "Why are you following me?" he asked cooly.

Max, no last name, shoved his hands into the pockets of his jeans and leaned forward, turning to look at Kyoya. "Just making sure you get to school alright."

"Who are you?"

"Friend of the kid." Kyoya just had to assume that "the kid" was Bobby's nickname.

"I surmised as much. Why have you been following her? Did her dad ask you to?"

"You ask a lot of questions."

"And you answer very little."

The man chuckled and kicked a pebble as he shook his head. "The kid's father doesn't know about the break-in. He doesn't know I'm looking out for the kid. I'm just attuned to situations and know when I might be needed."

"You think Bobby is in trouble?"

Max shrugged and glanced at Kyoya. He grinned. "Just looking out for her. Like you."

"I'm not looking out for her."

"Sure you aren't, Glasses," Max said with another laugh. Kyoya found it difficult not to react to the sarcasm. This guy was extremely weird, but apparently knew more about Bobby's extracurricular activities than Kyoya had been able to figure out. Max stood up straight and opened his car door. "Just make sure she doesn't do anything reckless."

"Reckless?" Kyoya asked as Max slipped into his BMW. In a flash, the small car shot out of the parking lot and left Kyoya looking around feeling like he was privy to some sort of spy conspiracy.

One thing was for sure, he needed to talk to Bobby. The kid? The spy?

0o0o0o0

Bobby was looking at a bunch of spreadsheets that were lying on her hotel bed. She shook her head and groaned as she fell on her back. "This shouldn't be that hard," she muttered, rubbing her tired eyes. She rolled onto her side and pulled her legs up to her chest as she took a few relaxing breaths.

Bobby opened her eyes when there was a knock on her door. She sat on the edge of the bed and stared at the door. She jumped when there was another knock and quickly grabbed the spreadsheets and shoved them in a drawer. She crept up to the door and backed up when she saw Kyoya standing at the door. Staring at the doorknob, she almost didn't hear Kyoya.

"I know you're in there. Open up," he sounded impatient.

Bobby opened the door and looked around the hall only to have Kyoya gently pushed her back into the room. He closed the door and locked it quickly and turned on Bobby as she backed up.

"Kyoya?" Bobby asked carefully. "What are you doing?"

"I was followed by Max today."

Bobby didn't say anything, but her mouth formed an 'o' shape as realization dawned in her eyes. She backed up even more, when the lights flashed off of Kyoya's glasses. "What did he want?" she asked.

"Who is he?" Kyoya asked as he looked around the room.

"I'm not entirely sure of that myself. He shows up from time to time and helps me out," Bobby answered. She turned and moved over to her king sized bed and jumped on it. As she sat cross-legged she hugged a pillow as she met Kyoya's gaze. "I used to think he was associated with my father, but the possibility went out the window when I asked my dad if he knew anyone named Max. So he remains an international mystery."

"So a strange guy follows you around and you don't ask questions?" Kyoya asked.

"If I stopped to ask questions every time he showed up, I probably wouldn't get nearly as far with some of my plans," Bobby said mysteriously as she added in a vague shrug. "I would also be dead most likely. The mysterious Max has saved my butt a time or two."

"He called you reckless," Kyoya said with a sly smirk. "So I'm not entirely surprised to hear that." He sat down in Bobby's spinning chair and looked at her.

"Is there anything else?" she asked.

Kyoya was silent for a moment as he wondered whether or not to bring up the fact that Max thought Bobby was in trouble, though she could probably tell that something was up. Apparently this guy didn't show up everyday. He shook his head as he looked around.

"Brilliant. Stay there," Bobby said as she pushed herself off the bed and skipped up to her closet. She bent over as Kyoya looked towards her.

Bobby pulled out a box and brought it over. "No tricks, I promise," she said. She stepped back and leaned against the edge of her bed with a smile. "Just a box with an offer."

Kyoya opened the box and found a bottle of Tolemei wine. "We aren't old enough to drink in America. Not even in Japan."

"Correct, but it's what's under the bottle that I'm suggesting." Bobby said as she waited for Kyoya to pull the paper out from under the expensive wine.

"Plane tickets."

"First class. We would leave first thing in the morning the Wednesday before Thanksgiving. You get to see Kaoru, and I get to see Kana," Bobby said. "The tickets are paid for, you just have to decide if you want to get on the plane."

Kyoya stared at the ticket and he was actually tempted to just say yes. "I have class that morning."

"I guarantee it will be cancelled," Bobby said. "The professors want a longer vacation just like we do." She leaned forward happily and watched Kyoya.

"Okay," Kyoya said, knowing that she was not only right, but that he didn't really want to go to that class anyway. He got too bored in that class, already knowing business ethics like he knew the back of his hand. It would appear that he would be going on vacation with Bobby in a couple weeks.


	11. Chapter 11

Chapter Eleven:

Kyoya woke up Friday, November twenty second and knew that it was going to be an interesting day. He had finally managed to get out of the hotel and he was back in their condo. Things were normal again. Sort of. Bobby had disappeared somewhere, and had yet to return to the house while Kyoya was actually awake. If he hadn't been receiving periodic texts that said she was okay, and if he hadn't seen dishes in the dishwasher that he hadn't used, he would have thought that the redhead had befallen some tragic accident. Thankfully that wasn't the case. Still he had to wonder where Bobby was spending all of her time.

After taking a few minutes to achieve full morning cognitive capacity, he slipped out of his bed and made his way to the stairs. He opened his bedroom door and sluggishly took the stairs slowly. The house was quiet. Another odd moment. Friday mornings, Bobby usually was sitting on the couch typing up one of her novels or working on extra studying.

As Kyoya stepped into the living room he found Bobby curled up on the couch asleep. She was just barely covered by one of her many warm blankets. This one had a scene of a wolf howling up at the moon. He had only recently discovered that Bobby kept that blanket in the coat closet. So she had finally appeared. Kyoya looked around and paused when he saw a wrapped gift on the dining room table. He walked over and pulled a card with his name on it off the top of the silver wrapping. _Happy Birthday_!

Kyoya looked back at Bobby as she turned over and was facing the inside of the couch. He couldn't for the life of him understand why she of all people would give him a gift, and as a result he felt that this was Tamaki's planning. He picked up the box and shook it slightly before he put it back on the table. He moved to grab the letter opener that Bobby kept hidden in the drawer with all the tape and school supplies that didn't always need to be on a desk.

Being overly meticulous, he opened the wrapping and pulled the box out and just looked at it. There were no discernible markings on the box that would tell him what kind of gift Tamaki got him. He shook his head, thinking that it was likely something useless like a photo of the Host Club.

He pulled the top off the box and blinked at what was inside. He wasn't even entirely sure how to respond to such a thing. He closed the box and turned around and stared at Bobby. He wondered where she had been. What had she been doing that kept her away from the house? Not that he cared, he reminded himself. Still, there was something curious about the way that Bobby had been sneaking around. Granted, Kyoya himself had been pretty secretive about his own agenda.

He knew that there was a merger in the works for Kana and Kaoru's family companies. But there was still a lot that the youngest Hitachiin twin didn't know, and Kyoya as the man with a plan, seemed to be able to find out more. Kyoya, in the effort of helping Kaoru, and his own stock portfolio, had taken to looking into the Iwate Family and their many companies. He knew that there was something very unusual, but he had yet to find any definitive proof. So while Bobby was running around doing whatever it was that she was doing, Kyoya had found ways to occupy his time.

Kyoya picked up the box and opened it again. He stared at the leather bound book inside and mulled over what Tamaki could have possibly meant by sending him a copy of _Much Ado About Nothing_. It wasn't a Shakespearian play that Kyoya was familiar with, and he had to wonder what it meant. He would look up a description later. As he crossed the living room a flash of silver caught his eyes and he looked on the floor to see that there was wrapping paper under the coffee table. Another card was on the table. He picked it up and looked at it and then at Bobby.

The card had been for him but the message was crossed out because of a simple misspelling. The card was from Tamaki, but now he recognized that Bobby had written it out. Did she know what was in the box? Had Tamaki enlisted the help of Bobby to ensure that Kyoya got his present, but then forgot a simple card?

Kyoya walked over to the window and looked out at the busy Boston street.

"What time is it?" Bobby muttered five minutes later, drawing Kyoya out of his reverie.

Kyoya looked at the wall clock and smirked. "Eleven."

"Oh fantastic," Bobby groaned.

"What time do you work?" Kyoya asked.

"I don't," Bobby answered. "The office closed after this week. The lawyer is retiring, his clients have been given new representation, and I'm out of a job that I didn't particularly enjoy anyway." She sat up and rubbed the sleep from her eyes. She pulled the blanket up to her chin and sat cross-legged. "Happy Birthday."

"Did you help Tamaki get the book?" Kyoya asked.

"So it was a book," Bobby hummed as she stretched. "The blond idiot just forgot the card, but he mailed the gift to me and asked me to make sure you got it."

"Why didn't he just mail it to me,"

"Because it arrived a week ago and he thought you would open it before today," Bobby answered as she pulled her knees up and hugged them close. "So how have you been?"

"I think the better question is where have you been?" Kyoya countered. "I was starting to think I lived alone. A development I enjoyed. New boyfriend?"

Bobby's lip curled up in disgust. "What makes you think I have a new boyfriend?" she asked.

"You've barely been home and you haven't been playing pranks on me. That leads me to believe that your attention has been turned on someone else," Kyoya said.

Bobby shook her head as she rolled her eyes. "So I must be off having sex," she muttered. "You do realize that the reason Bradley was cheating on me was because I wouldn't have sex with him."

Kyoya paused for a moment and turned to look at Bobby. "So you weren't intimate with him?"

"Do you ever recall me not coming home at night?" Bobby asked. "I liked Bradley, but I wasn't going to do the naked tango with him. Not all college students are sex crazed. At least not this particular college student."

"I just thought that you were intimate with him."

Bobby shook her head as she moved to the coffee maker and turned it on. "That's not how I'm built."

Kyoya looked at the book as he followed the redhead to the coffee pot. "What do you mean?" he asked as he stopped at the counter. He looked at her curiously. He had always looked at Bobby and just saw her as straight, though they had never once had an open discussion about their sexuality. It was just a crude topic. Still, her response intrigued him.

Bobby bit her lip as she looked up at the ceiling as if trying to form her explanation. "I'm asexual," she said simply. "I'm not sexually attracted people. I'm not filled with intense sexual lust. I want a relationship, but the sexual attraction on my end is missing. I liked Brad because I thought he was smart, and clever, and interesting. That's where I find people attractive. Their personalities, their brains, who they are as people will top their overall appearance. That's where my attraction for him rested. I never really thought about having sex with him. I mean, sex is. . . I can still. . ." She groaned as she rubbed her temples knowing that her own explanation was vague and confusing. "Putting my own feelings regarding relationships into actual words is so hard. I'm sorry, Kyoya. I just. . . I don't see people that way. Never have, never will, but I know that there are things I want and wish to experience, but they don't undermine who I am as a person or lesson my feelings on sexual attraction. I just don't. . . get it. Do you understand?" She leaned against the counter and bit her thumb as she looked at the ground.

Kyoya actually found he did understand what she meant. But when you spent years with a group of people who presented as any number of sexualities under the moon and stars, understanding that Bobby's attraction to people wasn't based on a sexual one was pretty simple for him to understand. Attraction was an interesting concept for him even if he didn't really think about it all too often. However, Bobby's ability to be open about it with him was a development that he actually enjoyed. Now that they were back in the condo, they were slowly slipping back into the normal rhythm of their odd banter-filled friendship.

"You said you thought Bradley was smart," Kyoya said. "You changed your mind?"

"He's a brilliant actor, but he can't fake intelligence. He's just smart enough to get into a private university, but he's lazy. After a couple of months with him, I started to see that I didn't really have anything in common with him, and I tried to make the relationship last, but he wanted things that I wasn't sure I wanted to give. He tried to make it seem like he was okay with it all, but he clearly wasn't."

"Is your twin asexual?"

Bobby shook her head but didn't elaborate. "Kyoya, can I ask you not to talk about this to anyone?" she asked quietly. "Even though we play tricks on each other, I do, to some extent, trust you." She didn't even look at Kyoya as she made the request.

"It's none of my business," Kyoya said. It really wasn't. What did he care that the woman didn't feel sexually attracted to people. It was her prerogative whether or not she wanted to reveal this, and it sounded like she was willing to talk about it, but only if asked outright. "It's an unexpected development, but-"

"What I can't be flirtatious and asexual at the same time?" Bobby laughed in disdain, shaking her head as she turned around and leaned against the counter. "I may not be sexually attracted to people, but I do find people to be good looking, and I am very tactile. I touch things, people, and I love to cuddle, but I'm not-"

"I understand," Kyoya said cutting her off with a placating smile. This was a sensitive topic for her, and he was always one to manage a situation. "I was going to say that I can kind of see it now that you've said something. You like people once you get to know them. But you tease on an intellectual level; it's never sexual with you. You're highly sociable, and maybe that's why I thought you were flirty, but it's not that. You're just nice to everyone. A real people person."

"People exhaust me, Kyoya," Bobby said dryly. "My dad doesn't know, and it's a bit of a chore having to explain it every time, but if you want to ask questions later, we can talk about it. Anyway, it's your birthday, what would you like to do?" She easily shifted the conversation from herself to the birthday boy with a smile. The conversation on her sexuality was over, and now it was time for Kyoya.

"Study," Kyoya said simply. Bobby clearly didn't want to talk about herself, and Kyoya was happy to have the attention on him. It was his birthday after all.

"Cool," Bobby said with a shrug. _To each his own,_ she thought. "And what would you like for dinner? I'll guess that you want spicy Indian food. I have to do one nice thing for you today. After that, I'll go back to playing tricks."

"I wouldn't want to think you're going easy on me," Kyoya said with a smirk. He looked at the couch. "What time did you get home last night?"

"Four."

"In the morning?"

"Yup," Bobby nodded as the coffee maker beeped. She pulled the pot down and grabbed two mugs. She held one out to Kyoya and he happily took the cup.

"Do you think that next time you can make it to your bed?"

"That's too much work. So, Indian Food?"

"I would be agreeable to that."

Bobby rolled her eyes. "You always sound like you're acquiescing and not that you actually enjoy Indian food." She poured herself a cup of coffee and held out the pot to pour Kyoya some.

"Sorry, I will attempt to keep my speech less formal around your less than superior intellect," Kyoya said as Bobby poured some coffee into his cup.

"Shut up," Bobby said with a smirk.

"So intelligent."

Bobby and Kyoya both laughed as Bobby turned to doctor up her coffee. Bobby took her coffee cup to the couch and sat down and wrapped herself in the blankets as she grabbed the TV remote. "I'll keep the volume down low," she said.

"You haven't been coming home at night because you're helping Kana, aren't you?" Kyoya asked suddenly as he walked over to the couch. He sat down and looked at Bobby. "I don't know what you're doing, but you're doing it and it involves your nights. What are you up to?"

"I'm looking for someone. Rather, Max is helping me find someone while I sleep in the backseat of my car," Bobby clarified as she pulled up on of the crime shows she regularly watched. "Yuzuha was scammed by someone, and they disappeared. I have reason to believe that they disappeared to Ye' Old Boston. But I can't find him. I need a money trail, but I can't get my hands on Iwate financials. It's a frustratingly hot mess with too many moving pieces, and not enough man power."

So she saw it too. The huge gaping hole in the entire Iwate Family Story. He sipped at his coffee and stared ahead. "You think the Iwates hired the man to scam Kaoru's mother."

"Makes sense up here," Bobby said tapping her temple. "There's just something hinky about the entire ordeal. And I've been trying to wrap my head around it all."

"Hinky?"

"Suspect. It means suspect."

"I know what it means, but it's not really technical language is it."

"English is filled with loose, made up words without technical merit."

"But you're speaking Japanese."

"Hinky isn't a Japanese word, is it?"

"I'm not going to win this argument, am I?"

"Not a chance," Bobby smirked.

0o0o0o0

Kyoya was reading a book as he sat in his first class seat to California. He would have preferred a private jet, but first class on one of the best airlines wasn't half bad. And while he was thinking about what he would have preferred, being woken up while the moon was still out was unacceptable. Unfortunately, he was up and there was nothing he could do about it. As he turned the page of his book, he felt the plane make a turn. They would be arriving in San Francisco any minute and he was certain that Thanksgiving was going to be an interesting experience.

He shifted slightly as a heavy weight fell on his shoulder. He looked down and found Bobby's red hair. Taking a deep breath, he told himself that it would only be for a half hour and that he could let Bobby sleep. She hadn't slept at all that night; instead she was running around Boston again. The two of them were so close to finding what they were looking for, they only need to find the missing puzzle piece.

As the intercom came on, Bobby jolted awake and blinked a few times. "Whas happenin?" she asked in sleepy English.

"The plane is going to land soon," Kyoya told her.

Bobby yawned as she sat up all the way. She looked at their feet and found Kyoya's laptop sitting on top of his backpack. "Have you found it yet?" she asked after a minute of just staring at the laptop.

Kyoya shook his head and closed his book. "Did you find your man?"

"He's not in Boston anymore. Max is looking for him in New York while we're gone," Bobby answered.

A half hour later the two were walking through San Francisco International. As they approached the security checkpoint, Bobby paused and stopped Kyoya from going any further. She glanced over and saw Kana and Kaoru waving enthusiastically. "Kyoya, we can't tell them what we're doing. Okay?"

"I hadn't really planned on it, but why not?"

"Because if they know and someone's watching them, then our plan to look into the financials and the scammer can go up in smoke," Bobby said. "Trust me, Kyoya, we're swimming in waters I'm familiar with. The less people who know, the better."

"I can work behind the scenes."

Bobby nodded. "Behind the scenes," she said. "Now come on. I have some snuggle struggles that can only be fixed by a Kana hug."

"Snuggle struggles?"


	12. Chapter 12

Chapter Twelve:

Kyoya stepped into the Tolemei Mansion and his brain started automatically appraising the antiques, determining their worth, and spotting the replicas. It was an excellent set up drawing on Edwardian styles and colors. He was still in the middle of his appraisals when Bobby jumped up in between Kaoru and himself and laughed. Kyoya slid his gaze to look at her.

"It's pretty amazing isn't it?" she asked before she spun on her heel around Kaoru and turned her attention to Kana. "Do I still get my room?"

"The one next to mine, yeah," Riku said climbing the stairs with Bobby. "So have you finished the book yet?"

"I've got a copy in my bag waiting for you to read," Bobby answered.

"I knew there was a reason I liked you."

Their voices faded as they disappeared leaving Kana to smile at Kyoya and Kaoru. "Welcome to my family home. You'll find rooms upstairs for you, all you need to do is pick one of the open doors. My grandparents went to go pick up Kenji at Davis. Kairi is finishing up his class right about now and will drive up when he can. Once you get settled, if Kyoya-san would like, I can give you a tour of the winery."

"Thank you, that's very kind," Kyoya said with a simple smile. He was in the presence of good company and he had a lot to gain by being on his best behavior. If he could establish connections with more European fortune 500 leaders, he could build on his connections. It was all a calculated business move. "I am interested in seeing the property. My family holds your wine in high esteem."

"That's what we strive for," Kana said. She beckoned them to the stairs and happily climbed them. "We believe in quality over quantity. You won't find any two-buck Chuck wine here."

"What?" Kaoru and Kyoya echoed. They looked at each other for a moment and then back to Kana. Kyoya may have spent the past two and half years in America, but he still didn't understand some of the weird slang or phrases that people used. This was just one of many instances where he much preferred the familiarity of Japanese.

"Oh. Right. American slang. It's really cheap wine," Kana said with a smile. She turned to the right and climbed the second set of stairs. "We have a large production, but we make sure to put out the best wine we possibly can."

As Kana came to the top of the stairs she gestured to the many open doors. "It's all available for you to take. Just pick a room. I'll give you a half hour to settle in, then I'll show you around the winery. Every room has a bathroom, so you don't even have to share a shower!" she said as she walked down the hall to one of the closed doors. She pushed it open and waved before she closed the door.

Kyoya glanced around quickly before he pushed his glasses up and made his way to the closest open door. He noticed as Kaoru used the room directly across the way from Kana's room. Oh yes, there was nothing going on with those two.

Kyoya entered his room and was immediately drawn to the balcony. He walked across the room and dropped his bag lazily on the King sized bag. He opened the doors to the balcony and stepped out. He was looking out at the town that was below. Everything seemed so picturesque. He was impressed. It was quite the view.

Kyoya heard a sliding door and he turned slightly to see Bobby step out onto the balcony. He stared at his door and then to the door Bobby came through. She smiled at him and leaned against the railing. "Nice view. It's my favorite."

"We share a balcony?" Kyoya asked. No matter what, it seemed that he would be unable to escape Bobby. Not that he was complaining too much.

Bobby nodded. "You could always pick another room, but you have one of the greatest views in Sonoma County. I don't see why you would."

"You and Riku seem pretty close," Kyoya said.

"Jealous?" Bobby asked with a smirk. She turned around and rested her elbows on the railing. "Why Kyoya, I didn't think you cared about me that way." She lifted her face up to the sky and grinned at it's warmth.

"I'm simply making an observation."

"Well it's not like that," Bobby said. She looked at Kyoya and shrugged. She bit the inside of her cheek before she spoke again. "I mean, Riku is very good looking and very kind and ideally everything I would look for in a romantic relationship, but he's just a really good friend. I love Kana, but Riku has a different view. He's a rock. I wouldn't complicate matters by engaging in something with him. But I don't even feel that way about him and he certainly doesn't feel that way about me." She pushed off of the railing and fell into one of the lounge chairs that had been set out. She leaned back and tucked her feet next to her. She gestured for Kyoya to sit in the chair next to her.

"You really like it here," Kyoya said as he lowered himself into the chair. He could still see the town and he wondered if Bobby had the room she had just so she could see the town. It was one of the best views he could imagine for Sonoma County.

Bobby nodded, but didn't say anything. She ran her fingers through her hair and took a couple of deep breaths. She looked around and finally turned back to Kyoya. "California is safe," Bobby said simply.

"Our condo has the best security we could get. Which happens to be your own," Kyoya said.

Bobby blew out a sigh and pushed herself out of the chair. "There's still so much we don't know about each other." She turned and disappeared back into her room. Kyoya heard the glass door close and he looked over.

While they had been living together for a while, they were still both wrapped up in their own worlds, their own paths. They ate together and talked about their days, but the two of them seemed to have an unspoken agreement that talking about their families in any detail was something you didn't do without being prepared to accept that it would likely be a long conversation. Still, Bobby seemed to invite his questions with the way that she said things. Like now. She had walked off, ending the conversation, but she had planted a seed for him to think about. There was just something to be said about Bobby's willingness to open up, but also retain her mysteriousness. Call his interest peaked.

Kyoya looked at his watch and blew a sigh. He was going to have to head downstairs to go on the tour of the winery with Kana and Kaoru. He pushed himself out of the chair and entered his own room, telling himself that he would just unpack and study later. He left the room to find Bobby standing in front of her door rocking on her heels. Riku came out of the room next to hers and grinned. "Ready to go?" Riku asked.

Bobby nodded as she skipped past Kyoya. Everyone could hear voices down below as Bobby jumped forward and leaned over the railing. "Is that Kenji?"

"Hey Bobby."

"Hello Barbara!"

Bobby groaned as she turned back to Riku and Kyoya. She looked at Kyoya. "You'll love Kenji, Bianca, and Alfredo," she whispered realizing that her voice was echoing. She started hopping down the stairs. She hopped off the last stairs and moved over to Kana and Kenji. She smiled at the shaggy haired twin. "So how are the natural sciences treating you on your way to wine making?"

"It's complex, but nothing I can't handle," the twin said with a smile. He scratched the back of his head as he grinned.

"Well of course. You're so smart," Bobby said tapping Kenji on the shoulder. She turned to Bianca's open arms and hugged her close. "Hello Auntie!"

"Auntie?" Kaoru and Kyoya asked. They looked at each other before they looked away again.

"Not her real aunt. Just old family friend," Kana clarified stepping next to her grandfather. She quickly introduced everyone to her brother and grandparents.

Bobby gave Alfredo a hug before she turned to back to Riku. "We all set?" she asked. She smiled at Kyoya before she moved to Riku's side.

Riku nodded. "Kenji," he began. "Kana was going to give these two a tour, but perhaps as training, you can go with them and explain the process of making our families wines."

"Where are you going?" Kyoya asked Bobby. Not that he cared too much, he just didn't want to be on a tour with Kana and Kaoru while they flirted nonstop.

"Riku and I are headed into the town to shop and hang out," Bobby answered with a glint in her eyes. Kyoya was reminded that Bobby was likely pushing his buttons and attempting to get a reaction from him.

Kyoya could feel Kaoru's attention on him as he pushed up his glasses and smirked. He was the picture of calm and collected. "I thought you would be joining the tour."

"Barbara already knows the grounds and our process for making wine," Alfredo said. This warranted another groan from Bobby. Even Kyoya knew that she didn't like her full name and always went by Bobby. Barbara was simply too formal for someone who would happily walk around in flip flops and shorts if the weather permitted it all year. As is Bobby was already complaining about the drop in temperature as winter fast approached. "I'm sure she wants to grab some yarn from the shop nearby so that she can knit."

"You knit?"Kaoru asked Bobby. Even Kyoya knew this. He had never seen her knitting, but he noticed the needles and yarn tucked away in a basket next to her reading chair. She favored round needles for infinity scarves, if he guessed correctly, but he saw other needles with other projects. He even saw a crocheted stuff animal tucked in the basket.

Bobby nodded as she gave the young Hitachiin a gentle smile. "I make gloves, and hats, and blankets. I'm working on some projects right now, but my schedule has been pretty busy. Riku and I are just going to walk around and have some fun."

Kyoya only smiled back at Bobby with what he had coined as his "Con Smile". He was thinking of all the ways in which he could get back at Bobby for abandoning him to a tour. However, he thought it was just as well. With her out of the way, he would be able to focus on the Tolemei's wine making process instead of trying to keep track of Bobby and her default as a complete klutz.

Bobby and Riku left the house and the others to their tour and dinner preparations.

0o0o0o0

Bobby sat across from Riku as she held a warm coffee cup. She smiled as she lifted the cup up. After she swallowed she looked around at all the Thanksgiving tourists. Once she turned back to Riku, she grinned. "Thanks for coming with me."

"Of course," Riku said. He leaned forward and pushed his cup out of the way. "Still miss home?" he asked.

Bobby nodded. "I always miss home. Living with Mr. Cold Shoulder doesn't help matters," she said.

"He's not always that cold, is he?" Riku asked.

"No. I think he genuinely cares about people. I think his friends from Japan matter the most. Being around Kaoru, he's a little different. He does care," Bobby said with a smile. She thought back to the first night in the hotel where she found that he had brought her favorite blanket. "I think he's just sparse in exhibiting that kind of emotion. He always masks it as if he's doing you some sort of favor. But there's something in his overall character that-"

"Sounds like he's the opposite of what you were involved with in London."

"Who I was involved with in London is beside the point," Bobby grumbled. She crossed her arms and shook her head at the old memories. "Anything is better than London."

"I think that sometimes you forget that you grew up in London and that it's not the city that's bad, but just a few people," Riku said. "This world will knock you down more times than you can count, but you always have the choice to stand back up. Running away to the United States for university only to encounter more trouble is no way to live your life."

Bobby groaned and leaned back in her chair as she looked out on the street again. "I was doing just fine last year. The school sucks, it's nothing like I expected, but I'm fixing that for next year."

"The transfer to Harvard," Riku said with a nod. "It would be a better fit. They have programs that you're interested in, a better English program, and there's the potential for you to network in the publishing industry. Your uncle will be quite happy."

Bobby nodded. "My uncle would be very pleased."

Riku pushed himself away from the table and stood up. "Let's get you back up to the house. You went on quite the shopping spree."

"I love yarn. I will not apologize,"Bobby said with a shrug. She grabbed her coffee and followed Riku to his car.

Ten minutes later, Riku and Bobby were stepping into the foyer. Bobby ran her shopping bags upstairs and dropped them in her room unceremoniously before she ran back down to the living room. She paused when she saw Kairi and Riku talking. Kairi was the more formal twin. He had a neat hairstyle where there wasn't a strand of hair out of place. His slacks had the proper crease. He and Kenji couldn't be farther apart on the personality scale.

"What are we talking about?" Bobby asked.

"The merger," Riku said.

"Why does she have to know about the merger?" Kairi asked gesturing in Bobby's direction, but not looking at her. "This is already dangerous and Kana telling all her friends is just going to make it worse. Too many people know about all of this. There are any number of results that can occur if they let it out."

Bobby rolled her eyes. Out of all the Tolemei family members, she and Kairi just didn't get along. He was practical, always thinking about every possibility. He got hung up on thinking about every single outcome where Bobby more often than not considered the most likely outcome and would work on a solution in the moment if there was any difference in said outcome. Kairi was the "best be sure of all possibilities" guy, but it prompted him to stall. He had yet to learn that the business world involved a fair amount of risk. She only hoped that he would understand soon enough.

"Because Kana and Riku are my friends, and I can help," Bobby explained. "Kana has trusted me with your little spectacle because I understand media attention. I'm making sure that the Iwates are focused on everything but the merger. The merger hinges on it being kept on the down low so that none of the particulars are released. The merger is solid, but you have to be careful about all of this."

"What do you even know about business? You're an English major! You don't even have a company waiting for you when you get out of college. You're the fourth child not mention a woman. Why would they ever put a woman in charge of a security company."

Bobby stepped back, almost feeling like she had been slapped. She turned her gaze to Riku to see that he had his mouth open. She glared back at Kairi before spinning on her heel and stomping out of the living room. She saw Kana step back slightly as she stomped up the stairs unable to contain the anger that was building up inside her. She pushed open her door before closing it quickly. She let out a sigh and sank to the floor, hugging her knees. She ignored the persistent knocking of Riku and shook her head.

"Go away, Riku," she sigh. She held her hand out and watched it shaking.

"Bobby, he didn't mean it," Riku said, his voice muffled. "He's just frustrated because the wine company is being forgotten in all this. You got to know that."

"It doesn't matter, Riku," Bobby said clenching her fist. "Kairi's right. I'm not going to get my dad's company. A woman in the Master's family is only good for a marriage contract."

"Come on, you don't believe that do you?"

"Of course not. It doesn't change the fact that a woman can't be the head of a security company," Bobby said. She banged her head against the door.

Riku was silent. "I'll come get you when dinner is ready," he said after a minute.

Bobby heard his foot steps echo down the hall as she looked out at the balcony. She pushed herself up and slowly walked to the balcony. She opened the door and sat down in one of the lounge chairs again. She stared out at the town and took a few calming breaths. She heard Kyoya's door to the balcony open but she didn't look his way as he walked out. He sat down next to her and looked out at the town.

They were silent for a few minutes neither saying a word or instigating any conversation. They just shared in each other company for a few silent moments.

"Are you okay?" Kyoya asked with a cough.

"I'm fine."

Kyoya chuckled. "It's been my experience that when a woman says she's fine, it means she's anything but," he said. "What did Kairi say to you?"

"He pointed out that I wouldn't inherit my dad's company," Bobby snickered spitefully. "I already knew that. Which is why the joke is on him. I'm inheriting an uncles publishing company. I'm an English major for that reason. He's so foolish. He never thinks beyond the limits. He forgets that my uncle is a perpetual bachelor, and that he doesn't have a biological heir." She pulled her hair out of her eyes and turned to Kyoya pulling her knees up.

Kyoya looked at her and pushed his glasses up. "This is the uncle who writes the tourism books, right? The head of Master's Publishing. One of the largest British Publishers. You publish every genre and make millions of dollars in the book industry. But your uncle doesn't have any children, never married, and he's been grooming you to take his place." He knew his facts. Bobby was never meant to take over the Security company because she was always destined to take the place of her Uncle. Still it must have really bothered her that she never would have been considered to take her father's place. But he had to wonder. Bobby did a lot for her father already. She tested the systems. If the information he had gotten was true, Bobby had been groomed to have a position in her father's company until one day only his three sons were listed as heir apparents. That was when Bobby started showing up at book fairs, publishing conferences. Her family life appeared just as complicated as his.

"Would you like to give me a tour of the town tomorrow before dinner?" Kyoya asked.

Bobby blinked a couple times before she smiled. "That sounds like fun. I'll show you all of the specialty shops this place has to offer."

0o0o0o0

Later that night, Kyoya was out on the balcony. There was just something about the way the balcony allowed him to look out at the town. It was the middle of the night and he couldn't sleep. It was his hope that being outside would calm him down enough to fall asleep. He looked at Bobby's door and found it open. As he stepped closer to the door he could hear her talk to someone.

"Until Dad calls, I don't," Bobby sighed. "Literally the only I can do for my dad's company is break his systems so they can fix them, and he won't even let me."

"Is he still mad?"

"I did kind of mess up," Bobby said. There was a edge to her tone, like she was admitting a mistake, but that she didn't really regret the decision.

"Because of me."

"No." Bobby's tone was stern and protective.

"Yes."

"Faye, I acted on my own. The fact that it's stayed out of headlines is the only thing going for me," Bobby said. Kyoya heard Bobby yawn loudly.

So she was talking to her cousin in France. No wonder she was up this late.

"Bobby, you still came because I called."

"And I would do it again," Bobby said as she yawned again. Kyoya heard her patting her cheeks and he could picture holding her mouth open. She often did the action as a wake up call. "Okay, you're about to lose me. Don't worry so much. Give Uncle my love, and tell Hikaru that I've got my eyes on him."

"Bobby!" Faye laughed. "I love you Bobby."

"Love you too, cousin," Bobby said before ending the skype call.

Kyoya lowered himself into a chair and acted like he hadn't been listening in on the call. He closed his eyes, focused on making sure Bobby didn't know he was there. Suddenly he felt a pair of lips on his temple.

"Goodnight, Kyoya," Bobby whispered.

Kyoya didn't open his eyes until he heard Bobby close her door. She knew he had been listening in and she retaliated in the perfect way possible. At least for her. It seemed like their lives were getting more interesting and their battle far more complex.

0o0o0o0

June 10, 2014, Author's Note: Hey friends! I know you're all quite busy with your lives, and so am I. I'm giving you a set of chapters right now, but I'm going to warn you right now of some delays in updating. I leave for a tour of Ireland and England tomorrow. I'll still be writing new chapters, but updating may not happen. The tour is three weeks long. So be patient and you may get many chapters updated when I return. I'll have my laptop, but I'm not really soaking up the culture if I'm constantly updating fic, right? I'll see you all when I get back, and I hope you liked that chapter. Please leave a review if you get a chance. I love to hear from you all.


	13. Chapter 13

Chapter Thirteen:

Kyoya stepped into his condo and looked around. There was the sound of music floating up from Bobby's room. That meant she was home. Kyoya was going to catch a plane the next day to get back to Tokyo for the Holidays. Bobby was leaving on red eye to Heathrow tonight. When he had asked Bobby about her lack of packing, she informed him that she never needed to pack because she still had clothes and a bedroom back in London. She only needed her laptop her backpack, and her passport.

Kyoya walked over to the fridge and opened it up. He grabbed a bottle of water and noticed that Bobby had done her due diligence and had cleaned out the fridge of any perishables.

"Hey you," Bobby greeted as she walked to the sink with a mug. She dumped a dark brown liquid down the sink. He assumed it was the hot chocolate she had taken to consuming daily. Boston was cold and Bobby just enjoyed warm drinks in the cold. But Kyoya had to stop her from drinking Mochas from Starbucks because she ended up being too jittery and would bounce around his room bothering him.

"You need me to take you to the airport, correct?" Kyoya asked.

"Only if Kyo-chan would like to," Bobby said with a smirk. She soaped up a sponge and started cleaning the mug. "I mean I can pay for the month long parking for my car, but personally, it makes me nervous to leave my car in a lot for a month."

"Which is why I ordered a car to take me to the airport tomorrow," Kyoya said.

"Would you like me to call a car then?" Bobby asked. She put the mug away and moved to the couch. As she sat down she pulled her legs up and sat cross-legged. "I need to talk to you about something."

Kyoya paused and turned around raising an eyebrow at the red head. "You do?" he asked.

"I need you to look out for Kana for me," Bobby said. "I'm not going to be in Tokyo, but you will be. Please, can you do that for me?"

Kyoya took a moment to study Bobby. Her brows were knitted together in worry. Her eyes were wider than usual with that pleading look he had only ever seen Tamaki use. Whatever had prompted Bobby to ask for help was a sign that things were far more complicated than they had thought they ever would be.

"I'll do what I can," Kyoya answered. "But I think that it will all turn out for the best. After all, we've planned for any possible outcomes that the Tolemeis and Hitachiin's are ignoring." He looked at his watch and realized that they would have to leave for the airport within the next half hour if Bobby was going to have enough time to check in and get to her gate. "We should be going. We can't have you miss your flight."

Bobby turned on her heel and started pacing around the living room. "Right, we should go," she quickly moved to her stairs as she started talking to herself, likely trying to convince herself that she wouldn't be needed.

Kyoya had to wonder himself why Bobby was so worried. Sure, his own family interactions with the Iwate Company were limited (his father wouldn't openly admit it, but he didn't particularly like how blood thirsty the matriarch was), but he still didn't have any reason to believe that there would be some sort of retaliation. What could the Iwate family do to the Hitachiins and Tolemeis. The fact was, those two families were protected by their own close associations with people like Bobby and, as Kyoya happily and proudly admitted, himself. There was nothing the Host Club wouldn't do for the twins, and Kyoya was sure he could say the same about the Masters and Tolemei families.

Bobby came back up with a backpack in her hands. She walked to the dining room table and grabbed her smaller fabric shoulder bag. She folded the bag and slipped it into the backpack. She was still muttering to herself, but this time it sounded like a checklist. She pulled her burgundy passport out and opened it up to look at the information. "That's all in order," she said much louder. "Nothing to check, nothing to declare, just a backpack with my laptop, iPod, my kindle, a notebook, some pens, wallet and passport. I'll pick up my ticket at the counter, and I'll be on my way home for a while.

"You aren't even going to be spending all that much time in London. You're going to Ireland."

"That's still home Kyoya," Bobby said shaking her head. "Just like this is home. Home is a feeling, not a place. It's the place you know you're safe. The place you come back to after the world has finished chewing you up and spitting you out for the day. Home." She pulled the backpack onto her shoulders. "Shall we go?"

"I still don't understand how Ireland is home to you," Kyoya said as he moved to the door.

"It just is," Bobby said rolling her eyes. "My grandfather emigrated from there. I speak the national language fluently. I go back every summer to spend time in Irish speaking communities. I just always feel like I belong there. Like there's this guy in County Cork who drives tour buses. Gavin. I was on a tour over the summer with some people from Uni, and he spoke Irish so I spent most of my time talking to him and the guide because they spoke my language."

"Why would you go on a tour of Ireland if you go back every summer?" Kyoya asked.

"I was bored and wanted to see what tourist see," Bobby answered with a shrug. She locked the condo door with her keys before she dropped her keys into her bag. "You should take a tour of Japan with a bunch of Americans. I promise you'll find it interesting."

"I'll pass," Kyoya said thinking about the times when he would end up going with Tamaki to see all the tourist attractions Japan offered.

"Spoilsport," Bobby muttered.

"One of us has to be the practical one," Kyoya only retorted back.

Bobby only ended up rolling her eyes as the elevator opened up and a man delivering flowers stepped out. It was a huge bouquet of orange roses. Bobby moved out of the way and watched the flower man for a moment. As soon as he passed their condo, she seemed to relax and moved to the elevator, slipping in next to Kyoya.

"You like roses?"

"Only certain colors," Bobby answered. She smirked. "Why, are you thinking of getting me some? How romantic."

"Very funny," Kyoya deadpanned.

Bobby laughed as the doors to the elevator closed. "I thought so."

0o0o0o0

Bobby breezed through customs the next morning. She pulled out her phone and shook her head and pressed the call button anyway. The call went straight to voicemail. "I know this is a sign of you sleeping, so I'll make this quick. Good Morning! I just arrived at Heathrow and am currently looking for my twin. Have a safe flight." She paused for a moment. "Oh! And Kyoya, call me when you land. Even if I'm asleep, I still want to know you made it."

Bobby hung up and slipped her phone into her back pocket. She glanced around and took a deep breath. _Home_. She was actually home. Sort of. She wasn't quite at the Masters homestead, but the sense of the familiar once again surrounded her. She could find a Kinder Surprise, Lays were Walkers, and the Pound Sterling reigned supreme.

"If I didn't know better, I would say you had feelings for Ootori," a voice called from behind her.

Bobby whipped around, a large smile pulling at the very edges of her mouth. "Spencer!" she cried happily. She pranced over to her twin brother and jumped into an open embrace. She felt her feet lift of the ground as Spencer spun her around a couple times. "Oh I've missed you so much!"

"Same here. It's been too long away from you. Twins should never be this far apart for this long. Why did you have to pick the States?" There was a small pout on the shaggy red head's face. But he still couldn't help but smile after a second.

Bobby frowned looking at the ground as she wound her fingers through Spencer's. Being around her brother made her happy, but there were reasons for doing what she did. "You know why."

"I know why, but it doesn't mean I have to like it," Spencer said. He guided Bobby towards the exit and started swinging their hands back and forth like they used to when they were children. Back when they didn't have a care in the world and they just wanted to have fun. He slid his gaze to his sister and saw that she was biting the inside of her cheek in thought. "So Kyoya leaves for Japan today?" he asked. "You've grown quite fond of the shadow king."

"It might still be yesterday in Boston," Bobby sighed as she tried to figure out the time difference, only to groan when she decided that math was really hard when you were exhausted. "Where did you get that nickname for him? Are we all set for our grand master plan?"

Spencer smirked and nodded. "Hikaru told me all about your Low Blood Pressure Demon Roommate. And do you mean that I'm ready to kick ass, you mean?" he asked. "Yeah, totally."

"Good. The Tolemei's will arrive on the private jet in about six hours. I'm knackered, so take me home so I can get a small kip in. Faye is going to meet them right? Of course she is. Kana and Faye need to catch up and unlike me, she didn't travel five hours ahead. Time travel is exhausting, Spencer. I hate it."

"One kip coming up," Spencer said with a laugh. "But first a ride on the train."

Bobby groaned only to start laughing. "It's a bit ridiculous for me to think this way, but everytime the automated train lady tells me to take caution when "Alighting" the train, I always think that it's Fairy folk who alight. Humans stumble and are subject to their own klutzy behavior. The message should be more basic. 'Take caution when leaving the train,' you know?"

Spencer only shook his had and looped his elbow with his sisters. "Yeah, you need a nap."

"A kip," Bobby corrected.

"A kip."

0o0o0o0

When Kyoya woke to get his flight he felt around for his cell phone. He picked it up and saw he had a voicemail from Bobby. At least she had landed safely. He sat up after about twenty minutes of hard negotiations with his body clock. Flying back home was going to be a real bother as he tried to adjust. He already had trouble waking up, and now… Now he had to account for the fact that Tokyo was 13 hours ahead of Boston and that when he wanted to sleep, he would have to be wide awake.

Once he managed to get out of bed, he picked up a stack of papers that looked like financial reports. He smirked as he looked at them. Things were falling into place quite nicely. He'd be damned if something snuck up on him. He was prepared for anything and everything. Now he just had to board a plane for Tokyo. A very long flight to Tokyo.

The Holiday was shaping to be a very busy one with a lot of busy parts, and Kyoya had an entire flight to think about it. But first he needed to listen to Bobby's voicemail.

He listened carefully and felt the smallest smile pull at his lips. He made a mental note to call her when he arrived in Tokyo. After all it was only polite.


	14. Chapter 14

Bobby was curled up under a heavy blanket in her large reading chair. Being back in her own large bedroom where she was surrounded by her instruments, her childhood memories, and just knowing that her mother was a shout away was a great comfort to her. She closed the book that sat open in her lap as there was a knock on her door.

Elizabeth Bennett opened the door and slid in. "All the others are downstairs, how are you feeling?"

Bobby sniffed as she scratched at her head. "Still pretty crappy. Of course I would end up getting sick the day before Christmas. So much for the massive sleepover in my room tonight."

"I wanted to talk to you about something," Elizabeth said. She sat on the arm of the reading chair and waited for Bobby to scoot over a bit so that she could slide next to her. She wrapped an arm around her daughter and let Bobby snuggle in close.

"What is it?"

"This Kyoya…"

"There's nothing going on between us, Mum," Bobby said. "We're friends and roommates." She took a deep breath. She sniffed and yawned. If there was one thing she knew for sure, it was that being sick always guaranteed that she would be sleeping a lot. Something that hadn't really been happening lately.

"Barbara, I know you well enough to see the way you talk about him," Elizabeth said. She squeezed Bobby's shoulder. "The way you talk about him has me curious, especially given that you develop relationships with people before you consider going further. Do you want to go further with him?"

"I told you, I'm just his friend," Bobby said. "We play pranks on each other and are just in general good roommates, but there's nothing going on." She didn't look her mother in the eye because she was sure her mother would see how much she was lying to herself. Bobby only continued to tell herself that Kyoya was _just_ a friend because she couldn't face the fact that they both were falling into something inevitable.

"Are you telling yourself that because you don't want to ruin what you have with him?" Elizabeth asked. "Seems to me that you do that a lot. Deny any romantic feelings you have in order preserve a friendship."

"I don't have friends at Uni. Kyoya is my only friend in Boston." Bobby almost laughed bitterly. She had had friends. Older seniors at the university. Now, they were off living their lives and she had been left to try and make new ones. Which was a problem because her closest friends were the Tolemei's and her cousin.

"He can still be your friend. Your father and I started as friends in high school," Elizabeth said with a sigh.

"You got a divorce."

"We got a divorce because we both couldn't reconcile work and our marriage," Elizabeth said. "I love your father, I always will, but we are better as a divorced couple who occasionally spend nights together."

Bobby sat up and shivered. "Mum!"

Elizabeth laughed hugging her daughter close, hugging tighter as the young woman tried to pull away. "I know. I know. No child wants to know her parents do the do."

"Stop. Please."

Elizabeth laughed even more. "My point is that if you really do have romantic feelings for Kyoya, you're only going to make yourself feel worse if you don't make your feelings known."

"Mom, I'm not like you. It's a little more complicated."

"What, you don't have the tingly sex attraction thing, who cares, but what you do have is a connection. I haven't met the boy and I know that much," Elizabeth said. "If that bothers Kyoya, than he's not right for you, and you need to drop that boy like a sack of rotting potatoes." She laughed and hugged her daughter close.

They sat like that for a few minutes before Bobby started coughing. She buried her face in her quilt. She grabbed a glass of water off her side table and sighed. After taking a couple sips, she pushed her fringe out of her eyes. "Mum, Kyoya. . . I don't know if I can take that risk."

Elizabeth pressed a kiss into Bobby's forehead. "Just think about it okay? I'm going to get you some oatmeal."

"Brown sugar on top?" Bobby asked hopefully.

Elizabeth nodded. She slid out of the reading chair gracefully and left.

Bobby checked her phone and pulled up the international clocks. She smiled and pulled up Kyoya's number and put the phone to her ear as it started to ring.

"Hello?"

"Happy Christmas Eve."

"Happy Christmas Eve. Shouldn't you be spending time with your friends?"

"Sadly, I have a small bug and have been sent to my room to prevent getting them sick before they head your way." Bobby leaned back into the soft chair and stretched as she propped her phone on her shoulder.

"How did you manage to get sick?"

"I was on a plane for eight hours. Circulated air in the middle of winter… Gee, I wonder how," Bobby said rolling her eyes.

"You just rolled yours eyes at me, didn't you?" Kyoya's voice held a hint of a smile.

"Oh my god! You must be psychic!" Bobby said before she started coughing. She grabbed her water and sighed. "Did you give all those reports to the guy I told you about?"

"I did. He's arranging everything so that it's all under control." Kyoya answered. "Are you sure we can trust him?"

"Of course we can trust him," Bobby answered. "He's a loyal fanboy of my father. I've known the guy since I was a small child. Don't worry. It's going to be sorted by the time the twin's shindig rolls around on New Year's Eve."

"Who says I'm worried."

Bobby smirked and shook her head. "All right, maybe it's me who has a small case of the jitters."

"Have you been drinking massive amounts of coffee again?" Kyoya asked. "You know how it makes you paranoid."

Bobby laughed and instigated yet another coughing fit. She pulled her phone away from her ear as she took a few gulps. "Kyoya, don't make me laugh." She said when she put the phone back at her ear.

Bobby heard Kyoya sigh and she could see him pushing up his glasses. "My apologies. You should get some rest."

"Did you get my present?" Bobby asked quickly.

There was another sigh. "Yes. Tamaki gave you my address I presume?"

Bobby smirked. "I have my sources, but I will not reveal who they are."

"Did you get mine?" Kyoya asked.

Bobby looked at her bedside table at the wrapped present and smiled. She thought about her own gift to Kyoya. There was a tablet computer and a hard shell case to protect it. The tablet had been preloaded with all of the latest apps that would allow Kyoya to manage stocks, manage his schedule. She would have gone for something more classic like she usually did, but Kyoya was a modern man in the modern era, the exact opposite of herself. She knew that Kyoya had gotten her a book, but she wasn't sure what book. "Yeah. I was thinking of opening it tonight."

"That's cheating. It isn't Christmas yet," Kyoya said. There was muttering on the other line and Kyoya sighed loudly as if he was being bothered. "That's the Host Club, I have to go."

"Sleep well Kyoya. And Happy Christmas because I'll likely won't talk to you until later."

"Happy Christmas."

0o0o0o0

Kyoya hung up the phone with a sigh. Ever since Bobby walked into is life, he found that he was bothered not just by Tamaki and his usual antics, but now Bobby added something else to Kyoya's daily life that was an unpredicted. How could he have imagined that his life would become so complicated when he believed that separating himself from the Host Club, and more specifically, Tamaki?

Still, Bobby was a separate entity and an enigma but he found that he was slowly peeling away at the layers. He knew more about Bobby now than he did back when they first moved in. But there still wasn't enough to say that he completely knew her. There was something undeniably intriguing about their relationship. They didn't act the same way that he acted around the Host Club. There was something different about it all. However, Kyoya struggled to put a name on the feeling.

Kyoya looked over at the exuberant Host Club. He had been hanging out with them in the third music room when Bobby called. Not wanting the Host Club to overhear him, he stepped to the very edge of the room.

Tamaki looked over. "Kyoya, how is Bobby?"

Kyoya sighed slipping his phone into his pocket. "Apparently she had caught a winter bug and has been sent to her room to prevent the rest of the Christmas guests and her family from getting the same bug," Kyoya explained. He took his place on one of the empty sofas. He picked up a tea cup and took a long sip.

Kaoru shrugged as he looked up at his phone. "Doesn't seem to sick to me," he said. He held out his phone to show his Instagram. "Faye just posted this."

Kyoya looked at the phone. _Bobby has been sent to her room because she's a poor panda. We're cheering her up._ Faye was sporting dark purple hair and she was resting her head on Bobby's shoulder who was attempting to smile. Kana was leaning on Bobby's other shoulder and was sticking her tongue out.

"She's struggling to smile," Kyoya said. "You can see it in the way that there are no wrinkles around her eyes." He sipped at his tea.

"So what did you get Bobby-chan for Christmas?" Mitsukuni asked as he threw Usa-chan up in the air.

"A book," Kyoya answered. "That is after all her family business."

"What book?" Hikaru asked.

"A clothbound copy of The Hobbit with illustrations," Tamaki answered for Kyoya. "It's Bobby's favorite book, isn't it?"

Kyoya raised an eyebrow as he turned to face Tamaki. "And how do you know it's Bobby's favorite book?"

"She told me when I came to visit you," Tamaki said. "I was looking at her collection of books and saw that she had the entire series of books. Then there were all the movies. I asked her about it when I saw that she had a few bags with the covers and then there's the autographed photo from the guy who plays the elf."

"Orlando Bloom?" Kyoya supplied. "I'm surprised you managed to notice that much about her. I thought you were too focused on telling her all about Haruhi."

"Why are you telling people about me?" Haruhi asked as she took a couple of bites of her sandwich.

"Why wouldn't I?" Tamaki asked innocently. "It's a shame we won't get to meet Faye while you're here, Hikaru," he said changing the subject.

"Bobby and Faye have their own plans. It's no big deal," Hikaru said with a shrug. But Kyoya knew that Hikaru was somewhat perturbed.

Kyoya pulled out his phone and pulled up his own Instagram app and scrolled through the photos that the Host Club had been posting. Kana, Faye, and Bobby were also active on the photo sharing media app. Bobby tended to post a lot of pictures of her surroundings more so than of herself. Occasionally, there was a photo of her when she thought that she had put a little more effort into her looks. Honestly, Kyoya never really saw a difference. She always looked the same to him. Kana posted photos of her food and she would photograph some of her restoration projects in the early stage, and Faye was posting selfies more now that she was in a relationship with Hikaru, but she usually posted photos of her art.

Kyoya never liked any of the photos, he just made simple notations at the back of his mind of what was happening and changing. Bobby was posting less photos of herself and her location and more posts that were more vague. She was pulling away from social media even if her best friends weren't. There was something going on with Bobby. Another thing he noticed is that she would never attach any home location. Others would have locations if there were famous locations or home, but for Bobby she would never post a photo while she was at home. She was vigilant about protecting herself at home and he wondered if this had something to do with the break in. Was she still having problems trusting her own security system? He mentally made a note to talk to her when they next saw each other.


End file.
